NFL: NFC Wild Card Playoff-Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys

Gov. Chris Christie greets Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant (88) and owner Jerry Jones prior to the game against the Detroit Lions in the NFC Wild Card Playoff Game at AT&T Stadium.

(Matthew Emmons)

It was 2007 in Atlantic City, and the hot new political property, U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, was giving local officials advice on ethics at the annual League of Municipalities convention.

Don’t take bribes was #1. Easy enough.

But he went further, and advised the local mayors and council members to refuse any gifts, not even a sandwich from the local deli. The public, he said, should never have to wonder.

Fast forward to last weekend, when Christie flew in a private jet to Dallas and watched a football game in the luxury box, a gift that goes well beyond the deli sandwich, all if it paid for by Jerry Jones, a man who made his fortune in the oil and gas business and has a hefty contract with the Port Authority.

This is not cash in an envelope, granted. But please, this clearly does violence to everything Christie said that day. And it does violence to his own Executive Order #24, stipulating that "all public officials must avoid conduct that violates the public trust or creates an appearance of impropriety."

I’ve sent the obvious questions to both the governor’s office and the State Commission on Ethics, but I’m not holding my breath.

Start with what constitutes a “friend.” According to Susan Guerrero, a Christie appointee who runs the ethics commission, the law allows governors to accept gifts from friends.

Is Jones a high school buddy of Christie’s? Or is this the sort of friendship that an oil and gas man likes to make with someone running for president? And is Christie’s affection genuine, or is Jones his entrée to the oil and gas crowd that gives so generously to the Republican Party – especially to those like Christie who have been consistently hostile to the fight against climate change?

But let’s assume they were pen pals going way back. How much can Jones give Christie? Is there any limit? And why hasn’t Christie at least disclosed how much these gifts are worth?

Put this together, and it cries out for the kind of transparency that we have never seen from Christie. When he swore his oath, he promised to be open and transparent like no governor before him. But he's spent years fighting off requests for public records, losing again and again when the courts pry the records from his paws.

The Port Authority, of course, plays a role in this caper. The Dallas Cowboys are part of a partnership that has a lucrative contract with the Port Authority to run the observation deck at of the 104-story One World Trade Center. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Port Authority expects to take in $875 million in revenue over 15 years on that operation.

What exactly is Jones’ cut of this cash? That’s not clear yet either.

Personally, I have no problem with Christie’s peculiar love for the Cowboys. I’m a Giants fan, and I wouldn’t let anyone mess with that affection either. It’s personal to me. And as hard as it is to watch Christie jumping and hugging in his luxury box, it’s more genuine than Hillary Clinton wearing a Yankee hat.

But governor, pay your own way. As you said back in Altantic City when you were a prosecutor, the public should not have to wonder.

Tom Moran may be reached at tmoran@starledger.com. Follow him on Twitter @tomamoran. Find The Star-Ledger on Facebook.