New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Wednesday he is “outraged” by newly released documents linking a senior member of his staff to the closure of lanes on a major bridge in September — shutdowns that caused massive traffic jams and sparked allegations that the closures were the result of political retribution. 
 
 The Republican, a likely 2016 presidential candidate, denied personal knowledge of any plans to close the lanes and vowed that “people will be held responsible for their actions.” 
 
 Text Size - 
 
 + 
 
 reset Flashback: Christie answers bridge questions N.J. assemblyman: Christie 'has a lot of explaining to do' 
 
 “What I’ve seen today for the first time is unacceptable,” Christie said in a written statement provided by his office Wednesday afternoon, the first comments the governor has made since the explosive documents emerged earlier in the day and prompted him to cancel a public event. 
 
 (QUIZ: How well do you know Chris Christie?) 
 
 “I am outraged and deeply saddened to learn that not only was I misled by a member of my staff, but this completely inappropriate and unsanctioned conduct was made without my knowledge. One thing is clear: this type of behavior is unacceptable and I will not tolerate it because the people of New Jersey deserve better. This behavior is not representative of me or my Administration in any way, and people will be held responsible for their actions.” 
 
 Christie’s office also announced an 11 a.m. press conference early Thursday morning. 
 
 Christie previously had denied his staff played a role in the lane closures and even mocked reporters for asking about the issue when it emerged months ago. He said a traffic study prompted the closure. But the emails tell a different story, potentially undercutting Christie’s reputation as a truth-teller who doesn’t play political games. 
 
 “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” Christie deputy chief of staff Bridget Kelly wrote in an email to Port Authority official David Wildstein, a Christie ally, on Aug. 13, 2013, according to The Record (N.J.) and other news outlets. 
 
 (Earlier on POLITICO Magazine: Christie has a bridge story to sell) 
 
 “Got it,” Wildstein replied. The following month, two of the town’s lanes to the George Washington Bridge were closed, causing backups for a week that one local columnist described as a “disaster” that “quadruple[d] commuting time for some of the people who live closest to one of the nation’s busiest bridges.” 
 
 Emergency responders said the traffic delayed their responses to four different medical calls, the Record reported. One involved a 91-year-old woman who died after reaching the hospital, according to the Record, although officials did not directly attribute her death to the traffic. 
 
 The closures came ahead of the gubernatorial election at a time when Christie was looking to maximize his support from the rival party. He ultimately claimed endorsements from more than 60 elected Democrats in New Jersey. But Fort Lee’s Democratic mayor, Mark Sokolich, did not endorse Christie for reelection, and some New Jersey Democrats have accused Christie supporters of retaliating with the lane closures. 
 
 (PHOTOS: Chris Christie’s career) 
 
 The longer — and higher — the scandal goes, the bigger a problem it could be for Christie’s national ambitions. The emails underscore the reputation Christie, a former federal prosecutor, has in New Jersey as a bully who lashes out at enemies over slights — real or perceived. 
 
 “This is absolutely the lowest level of political venom you could possibly even make up,” Sokolich said on CNN Wednesday. “I think he has to publicly address the folks that are specifically impacted by this, I think apologies need to be doled out and I think reforms have to be put in place to make sure this never ever happens again.” 
 
 Christie’s statement was vague about the number of aides he expects to discipline, and when. His staff did not immediately respond to requests for clarification. He referred only to having been “misled by a member of my staff” – apparently just one individual. He did not refer by name to Kelly. 
 
 At least one Christie confidant tied to the controversy appears shielded from immediate fallout: Bill Stepien, the governor’s former campaign manager and newly appointed state party chairman, is expected to continue advising the Republican Governors Association in a senior role. Stepien joined the RGA as a top adviser after Christie became chairman of the organization late last year. 
 
 Stepien was included on several emails last fall referring to traffic turmoil in Fort Lee, including one in which he referred to the town’s Democratic mayor as an “idiot.” In the messages reported up to this point, he has not been linked to the actual decision to snarl traffic near the bridge. ||||| Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey has explanations to make, apologies to give and an administrative house to clean now that his top aides and political cronies were shown to have been fully and gleefully aware of the chaos they caused by ordering up lane closings — and a four-day traffic jam — in September at the George Washington Bridge. 
 
 New Jersey residents had suspected for months that the sudden, mysterious shutdown of traffic lanes to the bridge in Fort Lee, N.J., may have had something to do with the refusal of the town’s mayor, Mark Sokolich, a Democrat, to endorse Mr. Christie for re-election. 
 
 That sounded far-fetched, even for someone known to be as sensitive to slights and as politically belligerent as Mr. Christie. He and his aides said such speculation was crazy talk, and he sarcastically joked that he had done it. “I worked the cones,” he said. “Unbeknownst to anyone, I was working the cones.” 
 
 Related Coverage Christie Faces Scandal on Traffic Jam Aides Ordered 
 
 Turns out it was his old friend David Wildstein, whom Mr. Christie had appointed as director of interstate capital projects at the Port Authority, who ordered the closings. Text messages and emails made public on Wednesday show that Mr. Wildstein and Mr. Christie’s deputy chief of staff, Bridget Anne Kelly, discussed the closings as political payback for Mr. Sokolich, who had no idea the closings were coming. 
 
 The correspondence shows that the lane closings were indeed a stunningly stupid act of petty revenge. They were also an egregious abuse of power. 
 
 “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee,” Ms. Kelly said in an email to Mr. Wildstein in August, a few weeks before the closings. 
 
 Mr. Wildstein replied, “Got it.” 
 
 When the Port Authority’s executive director, Patrick Foye, learned what was happening in Fort Lee, he immediately ordered the lanes reopened, calling the closings dangerous, “abusive,” and probably illegal. Such big changes to traffic patterns are usually announced well in advance. In this case, the vague explanation by Port Authority officials was that they were for a traffic study that nobody else knew anything about. The gridlock was horrendous; Mr. Christie’s aides were lucky that nobody was seriously hurt in the chaos. 
 
 Mr. Christie, caught out on Wednesday, could no longer scoff at or dismiss the scandal, or blame Democrats for it. There were two possible explanations: either he had been pathetically misled by his scheming staff, and failed for months to get to the bottom of the scandal, or he had spent those months dissembling to any and all. His excuse? He was a dupe. 
 
 “What I’ve seen today for the first time is unacceptable,” he said. “I am outraged and deeply saddened to learn that not only was I misled by a member of my staff, but this completely inappropriate and unsanctioned conduct was made without my knowledge.” He added: “This behavior is not representative of me or my administration in any way, and people will be held responsible for their actions.” 
 
 Mr. Christie can start by getting rid of every one of his aides and cronies who knew about this scheme and show what actions he will take against the person with ultimate responsibility for his administration: himself. ||||| New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has rocketed to the top of the 2016 GOP presidential field, fueled by his straight-talking persona, his tell-it-like-it-is approach to policy and his willingness to reach across the aisle. But that carefully-crafted position could be in trouble, thanks to burgeoning allegations that his office bullied an uncooperative Democratic mayor. 
 
 Mel Evans / AP New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie sits with students during a gathering at Colin Powell elementary school in heavily Hispanic Union City, N.J., on Tuesday. 
 
 Christie will hold a press conference at 11:00 a.m. Thursday morning to address the growing number of questions about the affair. Emails released Wednesday suggest a top aide to Christie pressed for the creation of “traffic problems” in the city of Fort Lee, N.J., where the mayor had declined to back Christie’s re-election. The closure of access lanes from Fort Lee to the busy George Washington Bridge created massive gridlock and sparked a state investigation. 
 
 In a statement issued Wednesday, Christie denied knowing about the involvement of people in his office in the controversy until the new reports came to light, saying he was misled by an aide whose actions were "unacceptable." 
 
 "One thing is clear: this type of behavior is unacceptable and I will not tolerate it because the people of New Jersey deserve better," the governor said. "This behavior is not representative of me or my administration in any way, and people will be held responsible for their actions." 
 
 The controversy is unlikely – at this stage – to sink any of Christie’s presidential ambitions on its own. But the new revelations create a series of headaches for the governor, and risk amplifying criticisms that his Democratic and Republican opponents alike could employ against Christie come 2016. 
 
 Straight-shooter or bully? 
 
 Christie has won plaudits for his willingness to charge ahead on his priorities, even if it means ruffling feathers in the process. 
 
 The bridge controversy risks casting Christie and his administration in another light – as bullies. 
 
 Christie cruised to re-election last year over State Sen. Barbara Buono, and Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich’s endorsement would likely have done little to change that. But Christie’s team had been trying to run up the margin of victory to help illustrate the governor’s bipartisan appeal. That his administration would resort to tactics like closing lanes on a busy thoroughfare to punish a political rival risks making Christie seem petty or even brutish. 
 
 NBC News' Chuck Todd examines the political impact of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's response to the George Washington Bridge controversy. 
 
 It’s not the first time the governor has run up against that charge and he doesn’t shy away from a fight. He has sparred with teachers and mocked reporters. 
 
 He even got into it with an onlooker at a Jersey Shore boardwalk. “You’re a real big shot,” Christie told the man. “You’re a real big shot shooting your mouth off. You’re a real big shot. You’re walking away. Really good.” 
 
 Teachers upset with his cuts to education have been a frequent target for Christie. 
 
 He told one that she didn’t have to teach if she didn’t like what she was paid, and famously chided one mother for asking why he cut funding for schools and yet puts his children in private schools. 
 
 “Hey, Gayle, you know what, first off, it’s none of your business,” he shot back. “I don’t ask you where you send your kids to school. Don’t bother me about where I send mine.” 
 
 Another accused him of telling her, “What do you want? I'm tired of you people.” Christie contends he said instead, “'It's never enough for you people. No matter how much money I give, it's never enough for you people.’” 
 
 Bipartisanship takes a hit 
 
 Christie’s claims to bipartisan appeal – likely to be a central element of his campaign in 2016 – are almost certainly undercut by the revelations as well. If the Christie administration sought to punish a Democrat for being uncooperative, it necessarily becomes harder for Christie to paint a rosy picture about his relationship with Democrats. 
 
 It’s not as though Christie’s efforts to broaden his appeal have been without risk, either; his public embrace of President Barack Obama in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, just days before the 2012 presidential election, earned him the enmity of some conservatives. And Christie has doubled-down on his partnership with the president, appearing with Obama at a rally last year to celebrate a recovered stretch of boardwalk destroyed by the storm. 
 
 Weakened relationships with Democratic officials could undermine Christie’s appeal with Democratic voters. 
 
 Credibility at risk 
 
 Lastly, the Fort Lee revelations strike at the heart of Christie’s credibility, a key characteristic for any elected official. 
 
 NBC's Mark Murray and MSNBC's Steve Kornacki discuss the latest developments on the Chris Christie "Bridgegate." 
 
 As Democrats have tried to advance the story over the past few months, Christie has denied political motivation in uncertain terms: “The answer is absolutely unequivocally not." Beyond that, Christie had said that he’d told his senior staffers last year to be forthcoming about the controversy, and that they had “assured” him that they had nothing to do with the lane closures. 
 
 Wednesday’s published emails by Bridget Anne Kelly, a deputy chief of staff to the governor, clash directly with Christie’s prior claims. 
 
 Christie had also laughed off suggestions of his own involvement in the traffic flareup: “I was actually the guy working the cones out there. You really are not serious.” 
 
 There are many miles still left to travel on the 2016 campaign trail. But as Christie mulls his next move – the governor canceled his lone scheduled event on Wednesday – what first seemed to be a pothole on the governor’s path to the White House risks developing into something more serious than that. 
 
 NBC’s Domenico Montanaro contributed to this report. 
 
 This story was originally published on
– Chris Christie has responded to today's amazing allegations that his aides deliberately caused massive traffic jams on the world's busiest bridge to punish a political rival: The New Jersey governor insists that he had nothing to do with it and suggests that heads will roll, reports Politico. The statement: "What I've seen today for the first time is unacceptable. I am outraged and deeply saddened to learn that not only was I misled by a member of my staff, but this completely inappropriate and unsanctioned conduct was made without my knowledge. One thing is clear: this type of behavior is unacceptable and I will not tolerate it because the people of New Jersey deserve better. This behavior is not representative of me or my Administration in any way, and people will be held responsible for their actions." If you missed it, emails emerged from several media outlets suggesting that Christie aides ordered two lanes shut down on the George Washington Bridge in September, which led to gridlock in the town of Fort Lee—because Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich wouldn't endorse Christie in his re-election campaign against Democrat Barbara Buono. For her part, Buono has called on the Justice Department to look into criminal charges. "It clearly exposes a web of deceit and subterfuge and political retribution leading straight to Chris Christie," she tells the Star-Ledger. Though Christie didn't mention names, the emails show that a top aide, Bridget Anne Kelly, told a Christie-appointed official at the Port Authority, David Wildstein, that it was "time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee." The emails do not implicate Christie himself, notes the New York Times, though the governor initially said nobody affiliated with his office or campaign was involved.