Cowboys junkie

To football fans, Gov. Christie's greatest mistake may be that he's not rooting for the home team. They argue correctly that as a New Jerseyan, he has plenty of choices: the Eagles, the Giants, and the Jets.

But the governor has a bigger problem than his conspicuous cheering for the hated Dallas Cowboys while sporting an orange sweater like some kind of jerk-o'-lantern. Christie's widely publicized acceptance of freebies from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is more unseemly than his cheerleading. As governor, Christie should be setting a higher ethical standard in appearance as well as fact.

The governor accepted free luxury seats for three games, as well as a ride in a private plane for himself and his family to see Sunday's game in Texas, according to his office. The governor has tried to deflect any criticism by joking that the Cowboys got plenty of good luck in return, partly thanks to the supposed mystical qualities of his sweater. Christie's staff also says he is following the Governor's Code of Conduct.

But is he? The code allows the governor to accept gifts from relatives and personal friends. While Christie and the Cowboys owner have been backslapping for only two years or so, the governor says Jones is his friend. However, Larry Noble, senior counsel to the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center, says such friendship exemptions in ethics rules are intended to "cover situations where you have a long-term friend" - not friendships made in one's "professional capacity as governor."

Worse, Christie's new friend also happens to be doing business with the government, raising the appearance of a conflict of interest. In a 2013 press release, Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo urged the board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to award a contract to run the new World Trade Center observation deck to Legends Hospitality, which Christie's pal Jones has an interest in. The board, which is appointed by the governors, naturally complied.

At the very least, Christie should reimburse Jones for the tickets and the plane ride and stop being insensitive to established ethical standards. The attitude that he can do whatever he wants because he's the governor has been a recurring problem for the administration, whether it was inflating revenue projections to balance budgets or shortchanging pension funds he promised to shore up.

New Jersey residents may already wonder if Christie's long-running romance with presidential politics makes him less than faithful to his home state. They shouldn't have to worry that his loyalties are further divided by his billionaire buddy.