Governor’s Admonition to Press to “Take the Bat Out” on her shows Continued Insensitivity to Plight of Battered Women
TRENTON – State Senator Loretta Weinberg, D-Bergen, issued the following statement today in response to Governor Chris Christie’s rant against her at a news conference yesterday, in which he urged the media to “take a bat out on her” regarding reports that she’s collecting a pension.
“While the Governor is in full-deflect mode, he’s made me his latest target to help draw attention away from his own shortcomings as a supposed ‘champion of good government.’ This episode has proven that Governor Christie can apparently dish the criticism, but is hardly able to take it.
“To clarify, I’ve never attempted to ‘hide behind Bernie Madoff,’ as the Governor suggested in yesterday’s temper tantrum. I’ve never tried to obfuscate or hide the facts. In fact, I’m the one who first detailed all the facts in a recent blog post on Blue Jersey.
“The Governor may be trying to play ‘gotcha’ with this issue, but I’m the one who announced it to the world. I’ve never sought to hide from or distance myself from the facts – unlike the Governor, who has routinely tried to use scapegoats and distractions to divert attention away from his administration’s own failings to look out for the best interests of the people of New Jersey.
“Most disturbingly, Governor Christie used the words ‘take a bat out on her,’ in his admonishment of the press corps to make hay over my pension. Frankly, considering I’ve devoted my entire legislative career to fighting for the rights of women – including battered women – I think his words continue to show the level of insensitivity and poor judgment that the Governor has demonstrated on women’s issues since getting elected.
“I doubt that the Governor will apologize to me personally regarding this latest attack. He has proven himself to be far too thin-skinned and stubborn to admit when he’s wrong on an issue. But I hope for the sake of women who’ve had to fear for their lives and their safety that he apologizes for his poor choice of words.
“However, I won’t hold my breath.”