Bruce Springsteen and Jimmy Fallon: "Gov. Christie Traffic Jam"

By Michael J.W. Stickings

You've seen this already, right? It's hilarious, it's poignant, and it's awesome. And I don't just say that because I love Bruce Springsteen.

This duet with Jimmy Fallon (who continues to grow on me), a parody of "Born to Run" aimed at the bullying governor of New Jersey, is brilliantly creative. And what it makes it all the more effective is that Christie considers himself, and I suppose is, a Springsteen superfan, so much so that it meant the world to him when he finally met Springsteen (thanks to President Obama), when they hugged and Springsteen called him a friend, during the Hurricane Sandy aftermath last year -- yes, so much so that Christie says he wept afterwards. (I get that. I'm not sure how I'd react if I ever met, say, David Gilmour or Roger Waters, or Springsteen for that matter, but it would be similar.)

But of course politically and personally the two men are vastly different. Christie is anti-union. He's close to Wall Street and very much its champion. He opposes marriage equality. He's one of the more sober Republicans but a Republican nonetheless. And it's like he's a Springsteen superfan who doesn't get what Springsteen is all about. I mean, has he ever paid attention to the lyrics? What does he make of, say, "The Ghost of Tom Joad"? Or "Death to My Hometown"? Or anything on Nebraska? Or even "Born in the U.S.A."? Or, or, or... Seriously, does he just not get it? How do you call yourself a huge Springsteen fan and still be... Chris Christie?

Anyway, like I said, this is brilliant, personal parody and political satire of the highest order, directed at a most deserving target. So much for that "friendship," which was never much of anything anyway.