The chief of staff for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Kevin O’Dowd, has been subpoenaed by the panel investigating the George Washington Bridge lane closures, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The co-chairs of the committee are Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D., Bergen) and Assemblyman John Wisniewski (D., Middlesex). The two said that O’Dowd “is in a unique position to provide insight into what happened under his watch as chief of staff to the governor.”
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Christie nominated O’Dowd for Attorney General in December. O’Dowd told the lawyers for the governor that he played no part in the lane closures that took place in September. According to interviews with Christie’s lawyers, O’Dowd said he received communications about the building controversy in the months after, but said he viewed them as politically-motivated.
So far, 30 subpoenas have been issued by the legislative panel investigating the lane closures. Four people have testified in front of the panel under subpoena over the past couple of weeks. Those four people are Christie press secretary Michael Drewniak, former Christie campaign staffer Matt Mowers, former Christie administration aide Christina Renna and Port Authority commissioner William Schuber.
None of the four people who have testified have provided a motive for the lane closures. The only apparent motive, as speculated by reports, was retaliation against the mayor of Fort Lee for not supporting Christie in his re-election bid.
