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US governor facing fresh probe over Sandy relief funds
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is under investigation after allegedly 'misusing funds' for the victims of Superstorm Sandy.
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Governor Chris Christie: Mistakes were clearly made
Governor Chris Christie appeared to make reference to a couple of recent scandals in his 'New Jersey State of the State' speech.
His opening words were as follows:
It follows allegations that staff in Governor Christie's office conspired to cause a traffic jam on the George Washington Bridge, and that funds for the victims of Superstorm Sandy were misused for a promotional campaign.
Congressman slams 'inappropriate use of relief funds'
A US Congressman has slammed Chris Christie after an investigation was launched into the New Jersey Governor's use of relief funds for the victims of the Superstorm Sandy disaster.
"It is inappropriate for taxpayer-funded dollars that are critical to our state's recovery from this natural disaster to fund commercials that could potentially benefit a political campaign," New Jersey Congressman Frank Pallone Jr., a Democrat, said in a letter requesting the investigation.
The investigation is focusing on a $25 million Jersey Shore marketing campaign which included a television advert featuring Christie and his family.
The promotional advert, with the tag line that New Jersey was "Stronger than the Storm," was broadcast in the spring as Christie headed into a re-election campaign to win a second term.
"Had Governor Christie chosen the less-expensive firm, $2.2 million in federal disaster aid could have potentially been directed elsewhere, for example, to provide 44 Sandy-impacted homeowners $50,000 grants to raise their homes," Pallone added.
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Christie facing fresh probe over Sandy relief funds use
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is under investigation after allegedly 'misusing funds' for the victims of Superstorm Sandy.
Investigators are looking into whether Christie misused around $2 million in Superstorm Sandy relief funds for a promotional campaign after a request was made from Congress, officials said.
Christie, who has been engulfed in a scandal centred on a set of traffic cones, is being audited by an investigator from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Sandy devastated parts of America's East Coast in October 2012 killing at least 159 people and destroying more than 650,000 homes.