With Kellyanne Conway busy running up her list of on-screen appearances, and Steve Bannon too busy doing … whatever the nonexistent role of campaign CEO does, there has been a gaping hole in Trump's campaign.
There are many campaign titles that are fuzzy and potentially meaningless. But there are many tasks that are specific, concrete and critical. Whatever label is applied to them, they are jobs that need to get done or else things go wildly wrong.
That's where the Trump camp is right now.
But now this gap has been filled.
Donald Trump's campaign has hired a former top aide to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie who was fired amid the Bridgegate scandal, a source with knowledge of the decision told CNN on Friday.
Bill Stepien, Christie's former campaign manager and deputy chief of staff, is joining the Trump campaign as its national field director, adding a heavy dose of campaign experience -- but also controversy -- to Trump's struggling campaign.
Bill Stepien is a very familiar name for those who have followed Bridgegate. Stephien wasn’t just involved in the scandal, he’s one of two aides that Christie shed when trying to build a firewall between the scandal and his office. If the Trump campaign wanted to make a single move that didn’t come loaded with distractions, this isn't it.
Stepien was not charged in the federal investigation into the lane closures, but court documents revealed earlier this month that a Christie aide texted a colleague amid Christie's news conference on the bubbling scandal in December 2013 that Christie "just flat out lied about senior staff and Stepien not being involved."
Donald Trump. Still hiring only the best people.
Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that he only hires the very best people. Apparently he considers Chris Christie’s disgraced former campaign manager and deputy chief of staff one of those people. The Trump campaign has hired Bill Stepien as a National Field Director. Christie claimed to be disturbed by Stepien’s “callous indifference” in hatching the “Bridgegate” scandal, concerns apparently not shared by the Trump campaign. …
Christie Cut Ties With Stepien After Bridgegate Emails Were Leaked. According to the New York Times, “Mr. Christie fired Bridget Anne Kelly, the deputy chief of staff who sent an email approving the lane closings, whom he called ‘stupid’ and ‘deceitful.’ Her deception, he said, led him to mislead the public, but he did so unwittingly. He also asked his two-time campaign manager, Bill Stepien, to step down as a consultant to the Republican Governors Association and to withdraw his name from consideration to lead the state’s Republican Party. Mr. Christie is the chairman of the association.” [New York Times, 1/10/14]