I've somehow managed to miss Chris Christie's run of media appearances, though I'm starting to catch up. I know that Christie has spoken highly of President Obama's storm response:
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) praised President Obama's work to help states battered by Hurricane Sandy as "outstanding" Tuesday....I know Christie tsaid on Fox & Friends that he doesn't "give a damn about presidential politics" in this situation, so he's not "the least bit concerned or interested" in whether Mitt Romney will come to New Jersey for a Sandy-related appearance. And I know he "ripped Atlantic City Mayor Lorenzo Langford on Monday evening for supposedly asking residents to stay in city shelters instead of evacuating."
"The federal government's response has been great. I was on the phone at midnight again last night with the president, personally, he has expedited the designation of New Jersey as a major disaster area," said Christie, in an interview with NBC's "Today."
That's impressing people who may not have previously been big Christie fans. Noam Scheiber:
Yep, agreed. RT @yeselson For Christie: Romney loss + big '13 re-elect = '16 GOP nomination. He knows what he's doing.
— Noam Scheiber (@noamscheiber) October 30, 2012
Charlie Pierce:
In case you missed it, no matter who wins next Tuesday, Chris Christie almost guaranteed his inauguration on January 20, 2017. From his tough-guy outburst at that dough-brained mayor of Atlantic City, to his outburst of genuine grace regarding the president and the federal response to the deluge that swamped his state, to his fundamental acceptance of the reality that we need a national government to solve national problems, to the way he slapped around the denizens of the Fox News Couch of Stupid, you have to give it to the man. He's been a genuine star over the last 48 hours....Why don't I agree? Here's the short answer: President Giuliani. Remember, we have one reality test of the premise that a Northeastern loudmouth can catapult himself to the GOP presidential nomination, and then the Oval Office, on the basis of one moment of bipartisan grace in response to a crisis, in the midst of a career otherwise built on fighting everyone who looks at him crosswise. We know how Rudy's story turned out.
The longer answer is this: Do we really believe Christie is going to win the Republican nomination in 2016 because he praised the person Republicans in 2012 hate more than anyone who ever lived? Giuliani, at least, built his moment of grace around mournful rage at swarthy Muslim evildoers; he didn't praise anyone Republican voters think is the Antichrist. Unless we're going to replace Iowa and New Hampshire in 2016 with the Morning Joe Greenroom Primary, what Christie is doing now is going to make him less appealing to the Republican base, not more.
Christie is generally a down-the-line right-winger, but this is just one in a series of deviations from Wingnut Correct Thinking on his part. Acknowledging that humans are causing climate change. Attacking anti-Muslim intolerance. Supporting an assault weapons ban. Supporting immigration reform. Yeah, he can move right on these issues, and Romney got the nomination in spite of greater heresies, but Romney was stinking rich and running against a field of clowns and lightweights. Christie is unlikely to be in the same position.
And there's no evidence that Christie is as shameless about shaking his own personal Etch A Sketch as Romney is -- Christie actually seems to believe what he believes, even when that's not what the GOP base demands. If he sometimes tacks to the center, sincerity is not going to help him in 2016.
And check this out:
On conf call with POTUS discussing post-Sandy cleanup efforts in partnership with the feds. He is instructing Gov't to lean forward to help.
— Governor Christie (@GovChristie) October 30, 2012
"Forward"! "Lean forward"! He used the commie slogan Obama and MSNBC use! That's not the kind of thing that's going to help him four years from now.
11 comments:
It may just be wishful thinking, but I wonder if Christie would have praised Obama if he thought Romney was going to win?
running against a field of clowns and lightweights. Christie is unlikely to be in the same position
besides clowns and lightweights, who else doe the GOP have?
Ed,
The clowns and lightweights are the best of the lot - the rest are stone-cold sociopaths.
And yeah, I think praising Satan's Kenyan spawn, President Obama, was signing his own death warrant with the crypto-fascist sociopathe's in the Republican Party.
besides clowns and lightweights, who else doe the GOP have?
Jeb. Rubio. Scott Walker. Rand Paul running with Daddy's backers, but without his absolutism on war.
I know politicians are always being political, but I think Christie REALLY dislikes Romney.
Christie is reading the teabags: If Rovian election crimes can't defeat Obama next week and the Dems become stronger in Congress, the teabagger right wing will self -destruct. Christie isn't going to go down with them. This was a great opportunity for him to realign with what passes for sanity among republicans.
My thought is that Christie thinks that Governor of New Jersey really isn't that bad of a job.
What ploeg just said accounts for his first motive. He DOES need to get reelected NJ Gov, and were the Dems to put up a solid candidate, he could be toast. Running for Pres in 2016 as a defeated Gov of NJ would not give him much leverage in any primary/caucus nomination scenario.
and were the Dems to put up a solid candidate
Yeah, like Cory Booker, who's making serious noises about running.
The GOP ad war this morning in PA is even more fierce.
I could go with a ban on campaign ads for the last week.
My take on CC, Obama & Sandy, etc, is a combination of what biz5th and ploeg said: CC knows O's going to carry NJ handily, whatever happens nationally, so this shores him up in NJ; and, CC can read Nate Silver et al. the same as I can & sees no mileage for himself in knocking the likely winner for the sake of stroking the likely loser. I agree with Steve, though - although this may reinstall CC as Gov, it ain't gonna sit well with the lumpenright who - once again - will be picking the R Prez candidate for '16 out in the heart(less)land.
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