Once again, there is speculation that Chris Christie might throw his hat in the ring and run for president. From Politico:
With the party’s frontrunner sagging, Chris Christie is reconsidering pleas from Republican elites and donors to run for president in 2012, two Republican sources told POLITICO.
The New Jersey governor has indicated he is listening to big-money backers and Republican influence-makers, and will let them know in roughly a week whether he has moved off his threat-of-suicide vow to stay on the sidelines of a presidential race that remains amorphous heading into the fall, the two sources said. …
But after months of going out of his way to end the speculation, Christie started indicating he would at least think about getting in during the past week, the sources said, a period in which he held an event with Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels — who has strongly indicated he’d like to see another entry to the field — and had a meeting with a group of major New York donors.
Read the full piece here.
After the Perry meltdown, I'm ready for someone else.
I honestly don't know much about Christie. I know he's straight forward. I know he's a good debater and doesn't fold under pressure. I know he'd be a crusader to fix the budget, which is what we really need.
I know NOTHING about his stance on other issues. I thought Perry was going to be a strong candidate, but how could I have known he'd pull the "you have no heart" BS that liberals so often use against conservatives? I admit, I didn't know Perry was so awful on illegal immigration. I did know he wasn't great, but I thought he could temper that and come into the race and we could move him a bit on that issue. Not so.
THAT is why I'm skeptical of Christie. I'd love to see him come in and knock my socks off. I could be easily swayed by him. I just have a feeling that there's probably a lot of social stuff that will put him outside the acceptable range for many conservatives. I'm really only basing that on the fact that he's a Republican from Jersey... Anyways, he'd add a lot to the debate even if he didn't win the nod.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIf you're looking for Mr. Immigration Tough Guy, it ain't Christie.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseCol. Travis is correct about this. Christie is weak on illegal immigration, and other than some fiscal issues and berating aging teachers on YouTube, I don't think this squishy RINO has much to offer.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm not looking for "Mr Immigration Tough Guy" at all. I just don't want our nominee to think that 90% of the party is heartless. I think that's a bad sign. Plus, subsidizing illegal immigrants is an indefensible position in a Republican primary. He can't win with that position, I'm pretty positive of that. Immigration isn't even a top 3 issue with me, that's the funny thing. He made me care about though, just not in the way he was hoping.
It's not just that with Perry. That last debate he just melted down. I can't imagine the guy doing well against Obama in a debate now. 8 years of Bush muddling his words and fighting to get a sentence out was more than I could handle. I want a president who's mind doesn't get scrambled when under pressure like Perry's did in all three debates, but particularly the last one.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAgree. I'd vote for Christie over Obama but he's gonna be a tough sell for (R)s because of reasons others have listed in comments above.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI'm from New Jersey and I like Chris Christie, but he's only conservative by Northeast standards. I think people from actual Red States will be aghast at the positions he's taken on a variety of issues. He's very articulate, and unafraid to speak his mind, and is weirdly charismatic when he is speaking. But I think this is one of those examples of people looking better when they're on the sidelines and not actually running for office. If he announces, he'll vault to near front runner status, but then the knives will come out. The unions will mobilize and the media will turn on him. The comedians will feast on his obesity, and get ready for nothing but the most unflattering pictures. We'll hear how he won't attract women(guess why) and we'll hear whispers about his health that will turn to shouts the closer we get to next November, or the further he goes in the polls.Finally close your eyes and imagine the visual contrast between Christie and Obama at the first televised debate.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseChristie just signed off along with Cuomo on the biggest tax hike I've ever seen via enormous increases in PATH fares and tunnel and bridge tolls. He caved to pressure from union thugs -- caved is not actually the right word I guess, since he didn't even put up any fight and seemed happy to go along -- to keep the WTC rebuilding slush fund as big as possible. Nothing is actually getting built at the WTC site, it's just thousands of union scum bags sitting around doing NOTHING. He's done nothing, zero, to deal with regular taxes or spending in the regular NJ budget either. His budget for this fiscal year is a big government atrocity. No conservative who actually lives in New Jersey would want Christie as president, or even governor at this point. I would vote for Obama in a second over Christie.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseNo, no, no! I love Christie -- where he is. Our front-running conservative is tanking. Why should we replace him with a moderate?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseChris Christie can't win on the national stage. His "my way or the highway" style won't play in Congress or other Washington entities. While his blunt style has won many fans outside of NJ, Christie is losing stature in the state. I honestly don't believe he will win re-election for governor, and he realizes his political capital is at its peak right now. It's run now or never.
I don't believe that Christie has done a bad job as governor in a lot of ways, but he is certainly just another northeastern moderate parading as a conservative. He takes on the unions, but lets the politically connected off (where are all the commissions we were promised would be shut down?). He is also as politically tone-deaf as Obama, as his helicopter flights and vacationing at the same time as the lt. gov. during a storm show.
I probably will be looking for another candidate in the next Republican gubernatorial primary, and as a conservative and a NJ resident I would not support Christie for president. But hey, the rumors keep his name in the papers, and give our weak NJ Republican party some notoriety.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIs Christie an orthodox conservative? No. Is Christie more conservative than Obama. Yes. Is Christie more conservative than Romney? Hard to tell, but I'm guessing probably not.
I personally have a lot of questions about Christie on issues that never come up in New Jersey - mostly having to do with the 2nd Amendment and the kinds of judges a President Christie would appoint. If he had to choose between Thomas or Kennedy, which Justice does he think more closely mirrors his own judicial philosophy? Does he think the Heller & McDonald decisions are good decisions, or does he think something else? What about Kelo? What about his decision to not join the Obamacare lawsuit? What his defense of the Ground Zero Mosque, and the firing of the NJ Transit employee who burned the Koran, on his personal time? Is that reflective of the kind of DoJ that a President Christie would create? Is he respectful of federalism, or is he more of a nanny-stater in the mold of Bloomberg? I get the feeling he's more of the latter rather than the former.
Christie is an articulate champion of fiscal sustainability, but the rest of his positions are a bit murky. I certainly wouldn't support him until he assuaged the items I mentioned.
PS - He would be the "largest" president since Taft. In the age of electronic media, we have never hired a a fat president. Is that shallow? You bet. But, it is what it is.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseOf course, that should have been "until he assuaged my fears on the...."
Teeny, tiny text-editor box, strikes again.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseFiscal sustainability is the mortal question we face right now. He's good on that.
Holding out for a perfect conservative will only guarantee a second Obama term.
Me, I just want someone more conservative than not, that will take budgetary issues seriously, and actually likes his country. All of those will be a galactic improvement over what we have now.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAgreed!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseExcellent. As Mary Steyn has said, you want someone to drive us over the cliff in third gear. "Better than Obama" makes no sense anymore. We need to do a lot better than better than Obama. And the guy who looks nice and talks well during the debates (but doesn't actually say anything) ain't cutting it.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThat's all well and good, champ, but I'm not the one who needs to be convinced to vote for a more conservative candidate. Few people here do. The rest of the country is who needs convincing, and I'd rather get partway there and Obama out than demand all or nothing and keep Obama in. Then we go over the cliff with the pedal to the floor. Better option for you? Sounds like it.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"Is Christie more conservative than Obama. Yes. Is Christie more conservative than Romney? Hard to tell, but I'm guessing probably not."
You would be hard pressed to convince me that Romney is more conservative than Obama.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI think it's time for Ryan to reconsider. Since he made his decision not to run several weeks ago:
1) NY and NV special elections went heavily for the R despite Dem demogoguery,
2) Perry (before the debate) was leading in FL after strong SS stance and despite Romney demogoguery,
3) Perry implosion underway post debates
If you recall the CNN debate, the ONLY applause line for Huntsman came when he mentioned Paul Ryan. I believe Ryan would be hugely popular with both Tea Party types and "establishment" types. He would crush the meme that Rs are anti-intellectual and anti-science and that alone it worth a lot. I hope he is reconsidering but I think we all need to push him in the right direction.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI doubt Christie is taking any pleasure in seeing Perry wobble. He knows his own appeal is largely vaporware at this point and once in he'll have an even smaller window for error than Perry.
He also knows he'll have to charge hard right to get anywhere with primary voters and that'll hurt his fallback reelection prospects in Jersey should he flame out nationally.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse@Frank 1914: "he'll have to charge hard right to get anywhere with primary voters and that'll hurt his fallback reelection prospects in Jersey should he flame out nationally."
If you've watched the governor's polls in New Jersey you know that he'll have an uphill battle for re-election there, even if he chooses not to declare for Pres.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseChristie probably sees that the eastern establishment Republicans think style is more important than conservative substance, and Christie has as much style as Romney. Neither of them have any real conservative credentials but, hey, who cares if they can debate, that's the important things it seems...to some. And if he gets in, Romney and the dwarfs (poll-wise speaking) will have another punching bag to work.
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