New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie held his 118th town hall meeting in Fairfield yesterday. Just as he has in the past, the governor used the venue to promote his achievements, take questions from the audience, banter with attendees, and have a heart-warming interaction with a child.
The Christie administration clearly sees these events as a way to connect directly with constituents, sending his message over the heads of the professional media. State Democratic chairman John Currie called the events, which are carefully orchestrated with mostly hand-selected attendees, political theater. He issued a statement Wednesday calling Christie’s town halls “a political farce” and suggested they were a waste of taxpayers' money. For its part, the governor’s office did not respond to a question as to how much the events cost, and who pays for security, maintenance, invitations, and promotion.