Chris Christie's hypocrisy on full display in Illinois

 Chris Christie is the man who wasted $12 million on a special election presumes to instruct Illinois on proper poll etiquette.

 Star-Ledger
on August 27, 2014

Time once again to hop aboard the traveling hypocrisy circus, governed by the man who never misses an opportunity to employ the same tactics he pretends to deride.

Gov. Christie was in Illinois Tuesday, stumping for some private equity guy running for governor who won’t release his tax returns, and he gave his usual breathtaking show of chutzpah by accusing the sitting governor, Pat Quinn, of manipulating the turnout in November.

“He will try every trick in the book. I see the stuff that’s going on,” said the omnipotent Oz. “Same-day registration all of a sudden this year comes to Illinois. Shocking. I’m sure it was all based upon public policy, good public policy to get same-day registration here in Illinois just this year, when the governor is in the toilet and needs as much help as he can get.”

Just two problems with that. First, it wasn’t the Democrats who got same-day registration passed, it was the Illinois Board of Elections, which consists of four Republicans and four Democrats. And Christie’s candidate, Bruce Rauner, supported it.

Second: Every study shows that same-day registration works superbly in the other 11 states it is used, increasing turnout by 10 percent, eliminating arbitrary deadlines, and facilitating poll access for mobile voters such as college students – while safeguarding against fraud.

"Debilitating stupidity" -- Dick Armey on Chris Christie's 2013 election chicanery
But Christie, now a leader of the party that champions voter suppression, calls same-day registration a maneuver that “would make New Jersey blush.”

Really, that’s precious.

Remember this comes from a governor who knows something about manipulating votes. He spent $12 million in taxpayer funds to hold a special election in October last year and called for a special election so that he wouldn't have to appear on the ballot with Cory Booker in November. He knew that Booker's candidacy would draw out the Democratic base, and he was determined to avoid it, so that he could run up his own margin of victory.

Now, that should make the man blush.

There were a lot of predictable reactions to this shameless hypocrisy, but the most memorable came from the unlikeliest of sources: “Debilitating stupidity," former Republican leader Dick Armey called it on CNN. "Dimwitted."

But that’s voter suppression, and Chris Christie has fully embraced the method. And on Tuesday, he whined about his inability to exercise it.