Chris Christie Bridgegate Port Authority Deborah Gramiccioni.JPG

Gov. Chris Christie announces Deborah Gramiccioni will be the new deputy executive director of the Port Authority at the Statehouse in Trenton on Dec. 13. Gramiccioni previously was the governor's deputy chief of staff for policy and cabinet liaison.

(Governor's Office/Tim Larsen)

Somehow, the right’s response to Chris Christie’s still-breaking Bridgegate scandal has devolved into this: Why are you writing about New Jersey traffic jams, because Benghazi!

In letters to newspapers and online comments, in phone calls to their favorite conservative radio and TV pundits, conservatives are in a state of collective denial: They refuse to acknowledge there’s anything to Gov. Chris Christie and the George Washington Bridge scandal until President Obama and the consular attack in Benghazi get equal time.

The Republicans' nothing-to-see-here talking points come from on high: Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee (and, like Christie, a Morris County guy) praised Christie's 111-minute apology news conference last week, suggesting others should follow the governor's lead: "Now, only if Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton would give us 111 seconds of that, would we find out some things we want to find out about Obamacare, Benghazi, the IRS."

On "Fox News Sunday," Karl Rove responded to Bob Woodward's comment that the Bridgegate scandal was significant because it originated in Christie's office: "So did Benghazi, and so did IRS … come out of appointees of President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton!"

What’s clear is that, scandal or not, most of the Republican Party won’t abandon Christie – the only GOP candidate assumed to have the juice to compete for the White House in 2016. Just the opposite: They’re circling the wagons and shoveling Benghazi and other old news at the public to divert attention from headlines coming out of New Jersey.

What’s the difference? Here are three reasons the unrelated Bridgegate and Benghazi stories aren’t getting equal time – and shouldn’t.

Intent: America's press corps has looked at Benghazi, the IRS scandal and the other Obama-related scandals tossed around last weekend. In each case, the facts dampened the early cries of conspiracy and cover-up. In Benghazi, neither congressional investigators nor the New York Times found evidence to support the idea of a concerted executive branch failure or cover-up. In the IRS fiasco, an investigation found both conservative and liberal political groups were subject to review – and everyone got what they wanted, anyway.

The Bridgegate story blew up last week precisely when documented evidence surfaced that Christie's top aides ordered the George Washington Bridge closures, presumably for political revenge against Fort Lee's mayor, and that the dangerous traffic jams that resulted were premeditated.

Coverage: It's hard to argue that Benghazi, the IRS scandal or Obamacare's glitchy website weren't covered in full. Each story was subject to intense coverage when it broke – just as Bridgegate is breaking now. To expect coverage of old stories to increase because of an uncomfortable new story is silly.

Just as silly are suggestions that New Jersey media, including The Star-Ledger, are spending too much time covering a breaking story of corruption in the governor’s office. Because Benghazi?

Cover-ups: Each scandal resuscitated by the right last week began with cover-up allegations that have faded under the bright lights of media coverage and federal investigation.

Meanwhile, new evidence that Christie’s aides tried to cover their tracks is surfacing as thousands of newly released documents and e-mails are made public. None of the evidence suggests the governor was involved at that level, but there are a lot of questions about the GWB lane closures that still haven’t been answered.

Bridgegate isn’t Watergate yet, but the comparison has been made. But it’s not Benghazi, either – no matter how desperately the right wing would like everyone to believe it is.

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