WATCH: Jon Stewart Bashes Christie Over Exxon Settlement

(He gets in a few shots at Sen. Robert Menendez, too.)

Looks like Jon Stewart’s not too happy with New Jersey’s settlement of the Exxon case:



The New York Times explains the background:

A long-fought legal battle to recover $8.9 billion in damages from Exxon Mobil Corporation for the contamination and loss of use of more than 1,500 acres of wetlands, marshes, meadows and waters in northern New Jersey has been quietly settled by the state for around $250 million.

The Times’ editorial board elaborates:

The $250 million deal, a pittance compared to what Mr. Christie could and should obtain, shortchanges the people of New Jersey, challenges his environmental credentials and casts doubt on his reputation as he looks to the national arena in 2016. The deal will also fall far short of providing the money necessary to clean up the environmental mess — the fetid pools that, according to a state report submitted in the case, “still look and smell like petroleum waste dumps.” A state law engineered by Mr. Christie last year says that any funds beyond the first $50 million collected in damages shall go to the state’s general fund. This means that if the settlement is concluded before the end of this budget year on June 30, Mr. Christie could use much of the money to help defray New Jersey’s huge pension bill — a fiscal burden that has dragged down the state’s credit rating and Mr. Christie’s own poll numbers.

The remaining $50 million would do little to cover the $2.6 billion needed for the most basic restoration of these once-fragile fields and wetlands.

Christie has defended the settlement:

“They’re going to have to clean up everything no matter what it costs, and we’re going to get the $225 million on top of it,” Christie said. “If you read The New York Times you’d never know this.”

Christie stressed: “They have to fix everything that they polluted to state standards and there is no cap on what they have to pay.”

More to come, we’re sure.