“I don’t think the tea party is going to seize upon Fort Lee and the George Washington Bridge as their defining difference for Chris Christie,” Rove said. “In fact, I think his handling of this, being straightforward, taking action, saying I’m responsible, firing the people, probably gives him some street cred with tea party Republicans who say ‘That’s what we want in a leader, someone who steps up and takes responsibility.’”

“When Glenn Beck says conservatives should run away,” Juan Williams countered, “when Rush Limbaugh says this is payback and this is the kind of Sopranos politics—”

“There’s a difference between saying it’s payback on the part of the media, it’s another thing to say is this going to have a huge effect on 2016,” Rove said.