Introspection time for Christie

Chicago Tribune: Chris Christie is a guy you want to like, sometimes despite himself. He’s just made that a lot harder to do.

Take him at his word that he knew nothing about the arrogant abuse of government power to bully a political opponent, creating a public safety risk and inconveniencing thousands of people. Take him at his word on that, and you still have this: He created an environment in which some of his most trusted people thought that was a slick trick. They reveled in it. Until they got caught.

Give Christie this. His apology on Thursday was full-throated. When he said he was “embarrassed and humiliated,” you could feel it. He fired his deputy chief of staff. He didn’t dodge. He asked exactly the right question: “What did I do wrong to have these folks think it was OK to lie to me?”

Political arrogance tends to be more corrosive than your everyday arrogance because the power of government is so vast.

That’s what struck us here: That people would wield that power with such force, and feel so gleeful about it.

If Christie comes up with an answer to the question — What did I do wrong? — it would serve him well to let us all know what it is. Introspection wouldn’t be a sign of weakness, especially for the famously brash governor of New Jersey.