NJ Governor Chris Christie Spent $300K of Taxpayers' Money on Food

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie really loves to eat. He loves spending taxpayers' dollars on food even more. According to Time, between 2010 and 2015 Christie managed to spend a whopping $300,000 of his government state allowance on food and alcohol alone. Official documents reveal that Christie spent a good portion of that on concessions at MetLife Stadiums, the sports arena where the New York Giants and the New York Jets play, writes the New York Daily News. He spent $82,594 on snacks during just the 2010 and 2011 NFL football seasons.

Christie was also a big spender at grocery stores. During the five year period, he spent $76,373 at Wegmans Food Markets, split across 53 shopping runs. This works out to an average of $1,441 of food and drinks per trip. He also spent $11,971 at ShopRite supermarkets and an additional $6,536 across seven runs (or $933 per trip) at ShopRite's liquor stores.

As governor, Christie is given a $95,000 yearly expense allowance — on top of his $175,000 per year salary — to use on "official entertainment or other expenses associated with the job." His office maintains that Christie only used the money in an official capacity. But Christie isn't the only politician who spends large on food. In 2013, a group of Texas politicians racked up a $22,241 dinner bill at a steakhouse. Luckily, a lobbyist was there to pick up the tab, and it didn't come out of taxpayers' pockers.