Christie Defends Paltry Exxon Settlement

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie maintains that his administration’s $225 million legal settlement with Exxon Mobile is “actually a really nice settlement,” though it’s far less than the $8.9 billion New Jersey originally demanded from the oil company for polluting land. At a town-hall event Tuesday, Christie blasted The New York Times for allegedly leaving out the fact that the $225 million is on top of billions that Exxon will pay to cover cleanup costs at contaminated sites. “They’re going to have to clean up everything no matter what it costs, and we’re going to get the $225 million on top of it,” Christie said. “If you read The New York Times, you’d never know this.”