Chris Christie and Bloomy deny reports of 9/11 ceremony squabble

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie tried to stamp out reports Thursday of a growing beef about who gets to speak at this year’s 10th anniversary ceremony for 9/11.

The mayor typically pulls the strings on the solemn ceremony at Ground Zero, but Christie didn’t appreciate former Garden State Gov. Donald DiFrancesco – who was in office in 2001 – getting snubbed, reported The New York Post. Blunt-talking Christie privately called Bloomberg “Napoleon” and a “putz,” the paper said.

“Usually, I just say those things publicly,” Christie quipped to reporters Thursday, calling Bloomberg instead “a friend.”

Bloomberg, in a separate news conference in Queens, said he hadn’t personally spoken to Christie but that “when it comes to 9/11, I don’t think the public is interested in some of these probably made up stories about political squabbling.”

Christie apparently got his way though. Bloomberg confirmed Thursday that DiFrancesco is now slated to speak, along with former Gov. George Pataki. DiFrancesco didn’t return a call seeking comment.

Hizzoner, however, sidestepped another question about whether Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants a more prominent role in the ceremony, according to The Wall Street Journal. In past years, governors have read poems rather than give speeches, so as not to make the event appear political.