Christie Cuomo
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (left) talks with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo during memorial observances at the site of the World Trade Center in New York, Sept. 11, 2014. The two control a bi-state agency that voted to provide taxpayer subsidies to News Corporation for an office at the new World Trade Center. Reuters/Mark Lennihan

CORRECTION, 11:15 p.m. EST: The original version of this story said Fox News was a subsidiary of News Corporation. It was a subsidiary of News Corporation until that company created the spinoff 21st Century Fox, which is now the parent of Fox News and which also received the subsidy in question, as explicitly reported in this story.

Original story:

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey today approved taxpayer subsidies to support News Corporation's and 21st Century Fox's planned move to the new World Trade Center in lower Manhattan. The bi-state agency, which also approved a rent reduction for the two companies, is controlled by both New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie -- and Cuomo is not the only one of the pair who had an incentive to help the firms.

Unlike Cuomo, the New Jersey governor did not get a lucrative book deal from News Corp. before the subsidy deal was cemented. However, Christie is running in a presidential primary in which the conservative viewers of Fox News -- a 21st Century Fox subsidiary -- will play a pivotal role, and he is currently jockeying to be included in Fox News’ upcoming Republican debate. On top of that, the Republican Governors Association -- a political group that was led by Christie and supported his previous campaigns -- has pulled in massive campaign donations from News Corp. and its affiliates.

News Corp., its affiliate News America and its spinoff 21st Century Fox have given the RGA $1.7 million since 2009, according to data compiled by PoliticalMoneyLine.com. That represents roughly 90 percent of the money the Rupert Murdoch-linked companies donated to both parties’ gubernatorial campaign committees in that period.

Christie’s 2009 election campaign relied on the RGA for financial support. As the organization continued vacuuming in cash from News Corp. and its affiliates, Christie became the RGA’s vice chairman, then benefited from the group’s spending on his 2013 re-election. He then became the RGA’s chairman.

Now, just a year after Christie left the RGA to launch his presidential campaign, an agency he partially controls has approved a direct subsidy -- and a $155 million rent reduction -- for those RGA donors.