Another member of Chris Christie’s administration has resigned as a direct result of his New Jersey scandal commonly known as “Bridgegate.”
Christie appointee to chair the Port Authority in New Jersey, David Samson has officially resigned his position according to ABC News . Samson was the head of an agency that oversees the George Washington bridge, the bridge at the center of the lane closing scandal.
The resignation comes one day after Christie was cleared of all wrongdoing by the law firm Governor Christie hired to look into the matter. Chris Christie accepted the letter of resignation and the administration said the departure would be effective immediately according to the Washington Post .
The now former agency head said in a statement this was a decision he had been thinking about for quite some time and decided the timing was right to pull the trigger.
“Over the past months, I have shared with the governor my desire to conclude my service,” Samson said in a statement. “The timing is now right, and I am confident that the governor will put new leadership in place to address the many challenges ahead.”
Governor Christie gave his own news conference, in which he said the appointee decided it would be best for the Port Authority to start over with new leadership.
At the same time, Christie said he didn’t believe the timing should be taken as an admission of guilt by David Samson.”I think that his role was not central in any of these things, nor has it ever been alleged that his role was central,” Governor Chris Christie said. “He is 74 years old and he is tired.”
Samson was never directly implicated in a scheme that has now seen five of the Governor’s administration resign or be fired. Bridget Kelly’s emails to David Wildstein (both who had previously left the administration) did seem to indicate she thought Samson would help them with the lane closures and the potential fallout.
Despite that assumption, there has never been any emails to show David Samson ever directly or indirectly involved himself in the scandal and the ensuing cover-up.
On Friday, Christie addressed the assumed cooperation of Samson in the plot carried out by Wildstein and Kelly, saying he understood it was a mistake to put Wildstein on the Port Authority in hindsight.
In regards to Samson’s replacement, Chris Christie said it will take some time in order to come up with a successor’s name.
