GARDEN VARIETY TRASH
Sports-talk wannabe Gov. Christie spews two-faced Manning nonsense
REAL people. Not actors. Or is it the other way around? Chris Christie, the parttime governor of New Jersey, recently did what he so effortlessly does. He spoke reckless, classless, thoughtless, undignified, bully-boy trash.
During his continuing radio gig /audition on WFAN’s “Boomer & Carton” show, he characterized Eli Manning as, “The liar, Eli Manning,” prompting Manning’s subsequent denial that he knowingly passed two of his Giants helmets to a collectibles broker for sale as “game-worn,” when they were not.
Could Manning be lying? Sure. Not that he needs the money, but he could’ve easily and casually assented to allowing two of his helmets to be passed along and sold as carrying his in-game DNA.
From years of study, I know the sports memorabilia “industry” to be fraught with fraud and fraudsters. Certificates of authenticity, piled high enough, make good doorstops.
But I don’t know if Manning’s lying, and neither does Christie. As the former U.S. Attorney for N.J. and now its governor, he seemed unaware his declaration of Manning as a “liar,” thus guilty, could jeopardize the adjudication of an ongoing lawsuit in a Bergen County, New Jersey court. It also may be an actionable defamation — even if Christie’s only a part-timer in both gigs.
Christie then was heard in his monthly “Ask The Governor” show on NJ 101.5, where he altered the courage of his conviction: “I like Eli Manning. I think he’s a really good guy. I’ve met him a number of times.”
As for his “The liar, Eli Manning” claim? Christie said, “What I said was: It appeared he hadn’t told the truth.”
Really? That’s what Christie said? Gee, that and “The liar, Eli Manning” aren’t even close.
With the coming depar- ture from WFAN of Mike Francesa, habitually unable to tell the truth about what he said, who he knows, what he did and where he was, Christie, as Francesa’s replacement, seems a form-fitting natural.
As for a bonus angle to this fake memorabilia caper, the story broke in lo- cal newspapers just before the 2014 Super Bowl in the Meadowlands.
Craig Carton, co-host of “Boomer & Carton,” called it a “scandal” to which Manning and the Giants “must answer.” Carton was rough, tough. Yeah, let’s get to the bottom of this!
Later in that show, Ar- chie Manning, Eli’s father, in town for the Super Bowl, was Carton and Boomer Esiason’s guest. Carton demonstrated the courage of his conviction by telling Archie Manning that the bogus helmet story about Eli is just a bunch of “nonsense,” then changed the subject.
Real actors. Not people.