NJ Residents Conflicted Over Gov. Christie's Guest Spots On WFAN Morning Show
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is a regular guest on the "Boomer & Carton" radio show. CBS2 reports he spent the equivalent of a full 40-hour work week on radio in the last year.
He co-hosted again Tuesday morning, but not everyone is happy to tune in.
From six to ten o'clock, Christie sat in the co-host chair on WFAN. It's something the sports talk station says he's done as many as ten times over the last 12 to 18 months.
Some New Jersey residents are criticizing the governor for not spending those 40 hours focusing on problems facing their state instead.
"I think he does a lot of things that take away from the office," Englewood resident T.C. Tanis tells CBS2's Hazel Sanchez. "I just put this in the bucket as another one."
Bergen County teacher Virginia Smith thinks Christie is checked out.
"I think he was really active in his early years but I definitely don't think he's doing as much as he should be for the state at this point," she said.
The radio station says the governor often calls in to Boomer and Carton and has participated on other WFAN shows, in addition to shows on competing radio outlets.
Government ethics expert Ken Fisher says this isn't anything new for politicians.
"We have a long tradition of elected officials speaking directly to voters for radio going as far back as Roosevelt," he tells CBS2. " But this smacks of him auditioning for his next job as media celebrity, rather than doing the job he has now."
After the governor spent four hours on the air at WFAN, CBS2 requested a few minutes of one-on-one time to interview him about his constituents' concerns. The governor's press secretary replied that it was "an unrealistic deadline."
"We need someone who actually cares about New Jersey," one woman said. "And I think he cares more about himself and his agenda than the people he's working for."
Christie has dedicated a great deal of time on the state's opioid crisis, including signing a law in February that limits opioid prescriptions to a 5-day supply and improves state health insurance coverage for in and out-patient addiction treatment.
In March, President Trump appointed Christie to lead a commission to fight opioid addiction.
Either way, the governor will be out of a job at the end of the year. Fisher believes it's unlikely New Jersey will ever elect him for anything else, so he has a bit of advice.
"If Donald Trump doesn't want to give him a job, the perfect place for him is on talk radio, but let him do it on the station's dime -- not the taxpayers," Fisher said.
