Chris Christie in The Associated Press

On Principles & Values: Spent beyond government travel allowance as US Attorney

The Republican candidate for governor, who has campaigned on a platform of ethical integrity and cutting government waste, regularly spent beyond federal guidelines on business travel while US attorney, records show. The newly released travel records sho that Christie occasionally billed taxpayers more than $400 a night for stays in luxury hotels and exceeded the government's hotel allowance on 14 of 16 business trips he took in 2008.

Christie said he stayed in more expensive hotels only when cheaper ones weren't available. "We always went for government rates first," he said. "I don't think there were a lot of stays in 5-star hotels."

The travel records date to when he was sworn in as US attorney in 2002. The limits are updated regularly to reflec inflation, seasonal price jumps and other economic realities of business travel. Federal employees who exceed the allowance are required to explain why, though the justification merely requires an extra layer of approval that is routinely granted.

Source: Associated Press coverage of 2009 NJ gubernatorial race Oct 13, 2009

The above quotations are from Columns and news articles distributed by the Associated Press. Click here for other excerpts from Columns and news articles distributed by the Associated Press. Click here for other excerpts by Chris Christie. Click here for a profile of Chris Christie.
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Page last updated: Feb 15, 2019