Chris Christie Reportedly Spent More Than $82K in Taxpayer Money on Concessions

When New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie isn't hanging out with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on Sundays during football season, it's a good bet you can find him at the concession stands at MetLife Stadium.

Christie, who reportedly makes $175,000 per year, receives $95,000 in expense advances annually. Although some of that money may be put to good use, certain allocation of the funds should anger taxpayers.

According to an expense report obtained by Mark Lagerkvist of New Jersey Watchdog, Christie used his debit card on $82,594 worth of goods from Delaware North Sportservice—which runs the MetLife Stadium concession stands—during the 2010 and 2011 NFL seasons.

You read that right: $82,594.

That's an average of more than $41,000 per season. If he went to all of the New York Giants' home games and didn't attend a single New York Jets game, he averaged about $5,000 per game. Or maybe he spent $41,000 each time Jones' Cowboys came to town.

Christie's team did issue a statement on the matter.

"The official nature and business purpose of the event remains the case regardless of whether the event is at the State House, Drumthwacket or a sporting venue," Christie's press secretary Kevin Roberts said in a prepared statement, per Lagerkvist.

As Watchdog notes, the money was paid back early in 2012. Christie has apparently learned his lesson because Watchdog reported the governor has not charged concession items at sporting events to his expense account ever since.

[Watchdog.org]