The Israel Seminar CEO Asher Afriat Israeli Defence Force Liason Officer Major Jonathan Conricus

The Israel Seminar CEO Asher Afriat briefs Governor Chris Christie regarding South Lebanon and the security of the Golan Heights in Israel on Thursday, April 5, 2012. (Governor's Office/Tim Larsen)

(Tim Larsen)

TRENTON — A sumptuous family weekend Gov. Chris Christie took at the end of his 2012 trade mission to Israel was paid for in part by King Abdullah of Jordan, according to a report in the New York Times.

At the time, Christie had already flown to Israel on a private plane belonging to billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, bringing with him three of his four children, his wife, his mother-in-law, his father and stepmother, four staff members, his former law partner and a New Jersey state trooper, according to the report.

By the end of the Middle Eastern junket, the tab for the Christie family and their guest rooms at the luxurious Kempinski Hotel in Jordan totaled some $30,000, which would be covered by the King of Jordan, Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein, the report said.

NJ.com had previously reported that Christie's weekend in Jordan was a "personal, family visit by invitation of the king," according to a statement from the governor's office at the time. Garden State taxpayers underwrote the price for seven state troopers and contract security during the weeklong trip to Israel and Jordan, but the total cost of security has never been released by the governor's office.

In the Times report, a Christie aide, Maria Comella, stressed that King Abdullah was "a friend" whom the governor first met at a salon-style dinner in New York in the fall of 2010, at the home of Michael Bloomberg, then the mayor of New York City.

The Code of Conduct for the Governor, adopted under former Gov. Jim McGreevey, via Executive Order 77, allows the state's chief executive to "accept gifts, favors, services, gratuities, meals, lodging or travel expenses from relatives or personal friends that are paid for with personal funds."

However, the Times report did not make clear whether the King paid for the Christie's lodging with his own private funds, or whether the state of Jordan paid for the luxury weekend.

Christie recently cited that executive order to defend his acceptance of private jet travel to attend several Dallas Cowboys games paid for by team owner, Jerry Jones.



Chris Christie, Jerry Jones and Roger Goodell meet before Giants - Cowboys game 15 Gallery: Chris Christie, Jerry Jones and Roger Goodell meet before Giants - Cowboys game

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Claude Brodesser-Akner may be reached at cbrodesser@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @claudebrodesser. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.