Report: Christie to speak at CPAC

Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) will speak at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference in March, according to Yahoo News.

The invitation came after the New Jersey Republican was snubbed last year.

American Conservative Union (ACU) Chairman Al Cardenas told Yahoo News that the organization was “very excited to announce that New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will speak at CPAC 2014.”

In January, Cardenas said Christie was “being looked at differently this year” because of his likely presidential campaign and would likely be invited.

Cardenas told The Hill that last year’s perceived snub occurred because CPAC had focused more on the “four or five governors who made the greatest contribution to the conservative movement.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R), Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) addressed last year’s event.

Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas), Rand Paul (Ky.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) are already confirmed for the 2014 event, as is Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.).

Christie spoke at CPAC in 2012, but the ACU decided not to invite him after a series of confrontations between the New Jersey governor and conservatives in late 2012 and early 2013.

The New Jersey governor is currently embroiled in a scandal stemming from his staffers’ decision to close lanes on the George Washington Bridge last year, creating days of traffic havoc, as retaliation for a local mayor’s refusal to endorse his reelection.

Christie pushed back Saturday afternoon against a former ally and The New York Times over a report that the governor knew of last year’s lane closures.

In an email obtained by The Hill to political allies and reporters, Christie’s office dismissed the Times‘s “sloppy reporting” and blasted former Port Authority executive David Wildstein, the source of the claims. The email accused Wildstein, the official who personally oversaw the lane closures, of trying to cover himself by laying blame on the governor.

–Cameron Joseph and Julian Pecquet contributed to this report.