Eideard

Doing the excess-profits polka with Meg Whitman
Daylife/Reuters Pictures used by permission

New Jersey has no legal obligation and does not intend to return $271 million in federal aid earmarked for a canceled tunnel project, says a spokesman for Governor Chris Christie.

The U.S. Federal Transit Administration had set a deadline of Tuesday night for the state to make the payment and Christie has repeatedly said New Jersey should be under no obligation to pay the money back…

The commuter rail tunnel under the Hudson River between New Jersey and Manhattan would have been America’s largest public works project. Christie canceled the project in October, citing billions of dollars in projected cost overruns that would be borne by the state.

The tunnel, which would have linked New Jersey and midtown Manhattan, became a lightning rod in the run-up to the November 2010 election, pitting those calling for more federal infrastructure spending against those who said such projects cost too much…

Christie…is a rising star in the Republican party and is often mentioned as a potential presidential candidate. If elected we will all be issued buggy whips to assist in transportation.