I think rumors of Christie's demise may be greatly exagerated.

[Jim Lane]

38. I disagree. Palin got a pass and so will Christie.

In the summer of 2008, amid speculation about whom McCain would choose as a running mate, I was sure it would not be Palin. I thought that Troopergate would be too toxic.

It had some similarity to Bridgegate in that it involved a governor using political power to go after someone he or she didn't like. (Palin's sister had been divorced from an Alaska state trooper. The trooper also had some minor disciplinary issues that were dealt with internally and resulted in some correspondingly minor punishment. After the divorce, Governor Palin pressured the Public Safety Commissioner to reopen the case and fire the trooper, who was then involved in a custody battle with Palin's sister. In July 2008, Palin fired the Commissioner when he wouldn't do so.)

These facts were known before McCain picked Palin. In October 2008, the state legislature released the results of an independent investigation by a retired state prosecutor, who concluded that Palin had violated ethics laws. Nevertheless, the scandal didn't stop McCain from picking Palin and, AFAIK, didn't play a big role in the election.

Maybe, as some DUers have said, a governor deliberately causing a traffic jam will have more impact. Everyone can relate to traffic jams. OTOH, by the time of the 2016 campaign, this will be comparatively old news. The electorate seems to have a fairly short memory about such things.