Chris Christie Cuts Down Town Hall Questioner (VIDEO)

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) didn't take kindly to a constituent's recent question about how his administration conducts town hall meetings.

At a gathering in West New York, N.J., this week, one constituent took the microphone and challenged Christie, raising concern over the possibility that the governor had planted a question at an earlier town hall.

Christie responded by seizing on the thinly-sourced claim and showing the questioner little mercy. To be fair, the man was forewarned, as the governor began the town hall by cautioning that "if you give it, you're gonna get it back."

"You really, in front of this group, with all the problems we have in this state, you're wasting these people's times with a question on whether we plant questions in the audience?" Christie said. "If I plant questions, why the hell did I call on you?"

With a kicker as effective as this, however, the question remains: Does Christie plant questions at town hall meetings?

(Video above via New Jersey Star-Ledger)

Comments

[nj and you perfect]

05:35 PM on 02/10/2012

HE DIDN,T ANSWER THE QUESTION DID HE! IF YOU REALLY CORNER HIM HE HAS THE STATE POLICE ESCORT YOU FROM THE ROOM! HE,S A PUNK THAT LIKES TO CALL HIS MAMA AFTER HE GETS CAUGHT BEING NAUGHTY, THEN MAMA COMES AND SAYS NOT MY CHRISSY!

[mericart]

06:35 PM on 01/10/2012

Chris Christie has no class, but the bigger problem is his anti-women policies as governor. He cut the state's family planning budget and held up a bill that would end the practice of forcing rape victims to pay for their own rape kit.

[lostnacfgop]

12:20 PM on 12/16/2011

hmmm . . . so much for thinking that he's gonna use the next four years to whip himself into "campaign shape." The Gov. appears to be expanding . . .

[IWantTofu]

10:14 PM on 12/14/2011

That old guy was a plant by Christie to make people think that he isn't planting questions.

[hoho5973]

08:35 AM on 12/14/2011

Well, hopefully Christie will make a good president when he gets elected in 2016 (if he decides to run, of course) I gotta say, that was a good move on his part to stay out of the 2012 race. 1) He gets experience at cutting deficits as a governer, doing what's right, instead of what's popular. 2) No Obama to run against, and 3) He should be the clear frontrunner come 2016. Smart!

[tman418]

12:55 PM on 12/13/2011

I don't agree with Chris Christie on many issues. Or anything, really. But I don't think that the questioner asked an appropriate question.

[Activist Annie]

12:18 PM on 12/12/2011

Why am I not surprised that Christie didn't follow the rules he so laid out at the onset of the meeting?

And, instead of exhibiting good manners to the gentleman who asks a question, Christie mocks his constituent and wants the mike taken from him. The kicker is that the audience applauds Christie's bullying. I guess the rules are for participants "keep their place" and for Christie to bully his constituents and some people still follow like sheep to the slaughter.

[hoho5973]

08:37 AM on 12/14/2011

Christie asked a fair question. Was the questioner a plant, too? It's a valid question. If he is accusing Christie of planting questioners, why would he call on him? It's kindof funny, actually.........but fair game!

[Activist Annie]

09:10 AM on 12/21/2011

Thanks for your comment.

However, I still maintain my original position, i.e., there was no reason for Christie, who is known to bully his constituents, to be rude to the questioner. As a leader he needs to exhibit good manners so others will follow suit.

[adrian nyu]

10:28 AM on 12/10/2011

Ground rules. If I agree with you I'm cool with you. If I don't F%*# Off! Awww, the New Jersey way.

[RecoveryRoad]

02:56 PM on 12/09/2011

the only thing that needs to be cut down in this clip is Christie's weight

[ducebiggs]

10:22 AM on 12/09/2011

He called on this guy , because you want to make it look, like there's no plants in the crowd...like the movie the inside man, and judging by the way he reacted there were planted questions for sure...

[Susan1964]

10:21 AM on 12/09/2011

Christie forgets one important thing. As an elected official, he is paid by the taxpayers, and they are HIS boss, not the other way around. If I treated my boss like that, I would be fired on the spot! He was asked a valid question in a respectful way. He deserved an answer. Christie's little disclaimer "if you give it, you're gonna get it back" I guess applies when you ask a question he doesn't like. Well sometimes we have to answer questions we don't like. It doesn't mean the questioner was out of line. It means Christie is an arrogant jerk who can't handle criticism. This might play well to the "I got mine, to hell with you" crowd, but he works for ALL the people in NJ, not just the ones impressed by his tough-guy attitude.

[IWantTofu]

10:19 PM on 12/14/2011

If my boss acted sacrimonious like that old guy did, I would call him out on it. But then again, I'm from new jersey too.

[Vincent Knaus]

09:58 AM on 12/09/2011

With Christie's setup about the "rules of a townhall meeting" I figure he was looking for something like to go down. With editing to show this confrontation I wonder how many other people had already been called on and how everything went after.

This may work in Jersey but I don't think it will fly elsewhere but I could be wrong.

[just-a-mechanic]

09:21 AM on 12/09/2011

Just plain love this guy! He's on track for the Presidency! Americans prefer to be spoken to in a straight forward, no nonsense manner even if they disagree with you. That is exactly what Christe is all about!

[Susan1964]

10:22 AM on 12/09/2011

He's on track for a quadruple bypass.

[Ann Joyce]

11:17 AM on 12/09/2011

Makes ya wanna send him cookies, cakes, and cheeseburgers for Xmas

[PhilliesWS08]

11:14 PM on 12/09/2011

^^^^ another illustration of how dumbed down America has become.....

[ThinkinPerson]

02:18 AM on 12/09/2011

The man asked a very important question. Christie was terribly rude to an elder. How many closed door meetings/time does Christie/any governor give to lobbyists? This citizen asked a good question which goes to the issue of representing the people, Christie's job. Limiting who can ask what is not called representation, its called a farce. Christie should have been more respectful. Did anyone see all those people clapping as Christie bats down an Elder? Gross.

[qwerty6040]

11:38 PM on 12/08/2011

He definitely has a friend named Candy (...and Pork Rind and Cheeseburger and Pizza...).