Steve Kornacki, host of MSNBC’s “Up,” got his start in journalism like many of us, at a local online publication. “My first job in journalism was covering politics in New Jersey,” Kornacki said on “Morning Joe” this morning about his time reporting for PoliticsNJ.com.
That site was started by David Wildstein the former Port Authority official embroiled in the politically-motivated lane closures in Ft. Lee, NJ, which lead to the George Washington bridge. But at the time, Kornacki didn’t know who he was working for: “It was anonymously owned and operated. He went by the pseudonym ‘Wally Edge,” Kornacki continued.
“For the three years I worked in New Jersey, I didn’t know him,” Kornacki said, saying he didn’t find out Wildstein’s true identity until after he left the local New Jersey site and had dinner with him: ironically near the George Washington Bridge.
“Morning Joe” co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski also addressed their friendship with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, saying it does not interfere with the tough questions they’ll ask if he appears on their show to discuss the the scandal.
Christie, who has fired his key aide involved in the fiasco, held a nearly two hour news conference on the matter today. MSNBC and CNN carried it in its entirety. Fox News carried it for close to an hour, dropping out during the press Q & A.
After the jump, Kornacki on “Morning Joe.”