Gov. Chris Christie says he won’t campaign for the Republican gubernatorial candidate in New York because the cause is hopeless: Gov. Andrew Cuomo is ahead by more than 30 points.
But he will campaign in New Hampshire, over and over, where the Republican is also trailing by more than 30 points.
What’s the reason? It may be that New Hampshire holds the nation’s first presidential primary. It may be that he doesn’t want to mess with Cuomo, who knows where the skeletons are buried at the Port Authority.
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But one thing is certain: Gov. Straight Talk is spinning again. And it seems to be habit-forming.
He’s right when he says the ship of state is heading straight into the rocks. Our fiscal crisis is now the nation’s second-worst, behind only Illinois.
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But he’s been steering all the while. He has won every budget fight since swearing his oath.
The chutzpah is remarkable. Christie just exploded his own pension reform by failing to make $2.4 billion in promised payments. Public workers did their part by paying more into the fund, and taking out less. It was the governor who reneged.
He’s trying to hide that fact with Hollywood-style puffery. He’s even released a video full of tough-guy rhetoric.
“There is no way to fix a severe problem like this...but with pain,” he says.
The only thing missing is an actual plan to match the rhetoric. All he’s saying is that he won’t increases taxes on millionaires to help cover the cost. It will all come out of worker benefits, again.
Which means this is all politics, and no substance. Christie knows that Democrats won’t support the lopsided deal he has in mind, especially after he broke his word the first time around.
So what is his plan? The scary answer is that he wants to pick a fight that will impress Republican primary voters. Screaming at Democrats and the unions could be his political plan.
Let’s hope not. The state really is in trouble. The credit rating has been downgraded six times on Christie’s watch, and his stunt on the pensions is sure to drive it down again.
In 2011, Christie made a deal with Democrats that made sense to both sides, and that steered the state to safer ground.
In 2014, his priorities have changed. Now it’s about snappy videos, snappy slogans, and a path to the White House.
So watch out, Illinois. We are coming after you.
http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/07/christie.html#incart_river
