# So, we should get used to saying "President Christie?" Yea or nay? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 21, 2013, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448 "2013-11-21T17:12:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/21 "2013-11-21T18:13:05Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > Plus I add to my nay … he’s too fat, he goes to sleep at Bruce Springfield concerts, he has skeletons in his closet, he’s a sure thing for SNL to make fun of him and everyone doesn’t automatically like people from Jersey. SNL makes fun of everybody. Sometimes it’s even funny. I’m not sure how much his weight is going to matter, but I’m not ready to assume people will refuse to vote for him because of it. There’s just not much evidence to go on. And what skeletons in his closet are you thinking of? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/22 "2013-11-21T18:17:53Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > And what skeletons in his closet are you thinking of? Maybe of the people and things he ate that made him so fat? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/23 "2013-11-21T18:23:16Z")
[Why Romney turned him down for VP.](http://swampland.time.com/2013/11/02/the-hunt-for-pufferfish/) Besides Romney’s personal dislike of “Pufferfish”: > [@](#): > > The vetters were stunned by the garish controversies lurking in the shadows of his record. There was a 2010 Department of Justice inspector general’s investigation of Christie’s spending patterns in his job prior to the governorship, which criticized him for being “the U.S. attorney who most often exceeded the government [travel expense] rate without adequate justification” and for offering “insufficient, inaccurate, or no justification” for stays at swank hotels like the Four Seasons. There was the fact that Christie worked as a lobbyist on behalf of the Securities Industry Association at a time when Bernie Madoff was a senior SIA official—and sought an exemption from New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act. There was Christie’s decision to steer hefty government contracts to donors and political allies like former Attorney General John Ashcroft, which sparked a congressional hearing. There was a defamation lawsuit brought against Christie arising out of his successful 1994 run to oust an incumbent in a local Garden State race. Then there was Todd Christie, the Governor’s brother, who in 2008 agreed to a settlement of civil charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission in which he acknowledged making “hundreds of trades in which customers had been systematically overcharged.” (Todd also oversaw a family foundation whose activities and purpose raised eyebrows among the vetters.) And all that was on top of a litany of glaring matters that sparked concern on Myers’ team: Christie’s other lobbying clients, his investments overseas, the YouTube clips that helped make him a star but might call into doubt his presidential temperament, and the status of his health. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/24 "2013-11-21T18:25:38Z")
The Republicans have sent up two “moderates” and lost each time. Doesn’t matter the exact reasons why. There’s absolutely NO chance the extreme right wing loons will let them send up anything less than the most rabidly conservative frothing at the mouth Teahadist they can. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/25 "2013-11-21T18:27:58Z")
> [@ILikeForeignLanguages](#): > > I admit that it’s not good therapy, as it promotes the false notion that seeing a counselor can make a gay person straight; however, I don’t see how it’s child abuse, and I don’t agree with Christie’s action against it. According to Christie “The American Psychological Assn. has found that efforts to change sexual orientation can pose critical health risks including, but not limited to, depression, substance abuse, social withdrawal, decreased self-esteem and suicidal thoughts.” > **[Chris Christie signs N.J. bill banning gay conversion therapy](https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-chris-christie-gay-conversion-20130819-story.html)** > > New Jersey on Monday became the second state after California to ban so-called conversion therapy aimed at changing the sexual orientation of gay minors after Gov. Certainly a drug with such side effects should and would be banned, especially if it had no evidence of benefit. Why not a therapy? Do you disagree with the American Psychological Association? Do you think Christie misrepresented their view? Or would you also disagree with the banning a medicine with no benefit and the same side effects, as paving the way for a future dictator? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/26 "2013-11-21T18:30:51Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > There is absolutely no chance that Christie would get the nomination, much less the presidency. The early battles are in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. Sure, he has a good chance in NH. But in Iowa, it’s go hard right or go home. Even more so in South Carolina. Lose two of the first three and the fat lady starts to warm up if not start singing. If it’s Hillary vs. Christie, name one state that Christie would take that Obama did not in 2012. I can’t. But I can see her picking up Arizona, Missouri, Indiana, and North Carolina. Maybe even Arkansas. Hillary would mop the floor with Christie. But just in case, they better reglaze President Taft’s bathtub. I wouldn’t rule out his getting the nomination. The thing to remember is how small Iowa and New Hampshire are. A well-organized candidate with a good personality can actually go out and talk to enough voters in these states to influence the outcome. I’ve never met Christie and I don’t know what he’s like in person. But it’s possible he could go out and meet Iowans and New Hampshirites (had to look that one up) and win them over even if another candidate’s political beliefs better match theirs. And a strong showing in the first two states could jumpstart his campaign. That said, this is more of a Democratic strategy than a Republican one. When it comes to nominations, Republicans tend to prefer candidates who’ve been around and they’ve gotten familiar with. On that basis, Ryan or Santorum will be the likely nominee. If Christie runs in 2016 he’ll probably be looking at it as his opening move for a 2020 nomination. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/27 "2013-11-21T18:37:57Z")
> [@](#): > > Regardless of a politician’s political stance, be it liberal, conservative or moderate, the one thing they should always be evaluated by is their treatment of human rights track record. Practicing an unproven form of “therapy” that tries to turn gay people straight isn’t a human right any way you slice it. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/28 "2013-11-21T18:43:30Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I wouldn’t rule out his getting the nomination. The thing to remember is how small Iowa and New Hampshire are. It’s not that Iowa is really small (it has 3 million people, after all, larger than 20 other states), it is the small number that vote in the Caucus and where they lie on the spectrum. “The 121,501 votes represent 19.8 percent of active registered Republicans in the state and just 5.4 percent of all Iowans eligible to vote.” - from the wikipedia page on the 2012 presidential election results in Iowa. So you have 5% of the people eligible to vote, in a state representing 1% of the population of the country, making major decisions on who represents the Republicans in the Presidential Elections. Awesome. Great system you got there. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/29 "2013-11-21T19:19:31Z")
The Republican leadership won’t let primaries get in their way. If they want Christie, they’ll change the rules so they disenfranchise the loonies. Having said that, it’s just too far away. I’d say Christie is the ‘front runner’ on either side - ahead of Hillary, or Elizabeth Warren, or whoever, but still, I’d say his overall chances are maybe 1 in 10. Most likely it will be somebody nobody’s discussing right now. > [@Jonathan Chance](#): > > And Hillary - or any D candidate - has an enormous edge in the electoral college. I can quickly think of 200 electoral votes that are a lock for any D candidate and possibly more. The R candidate has a higher hurdle to get over. \*Unless \*that Republican is Chris Christie. He can win Democratic ‘locks’ like New Jersey and New York, and has a decent shot at Pennsylvania and Connecticut. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/30 "2013-11-21T19:24:21Z")
Christie is like every other Republican savior–great until everybody gets a closer look at him. (See also Giuliani, Fred Thompson, etc.) The fact is that he’s a loud, abrasive asshole. That doesn’t make him a bad person–hell, most of my friends could be described similarly–but it makes him a lousy national candidate. He also doesn’t care who he pisses off, which is not a good trait for someone going into a two-year campaign to get as many people as possible to like you. That’s really what it comes down to–even if you respect Christie, or you think he’s exactly what we need, he’s not that easy to like. He’s given pretty much everybody a reason not to like him at this point. Once the stresses of the campaign get to him and he really starts letting it out it’s all downhill from there. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/31 "2013-11-21T19:24:36Z")
> [@bup](#): > > The Republican leadership won’t let primaries get in their way. If they want Christie, they’ll change the rules so they disenfranchise the loonies. Party leadership doesn’t choose the president. > [@](#): > > \*Unless \*that Republican is Chris Christie. He can win Democratic ‘locks’ like New Jersey and New York, and has a decent shot at Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Only if he’s running against Dennis Kucinich- and probably not even then. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/32 "2013-11-21T19:30:01Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Party leadership doesn’t choose the president. No, but they can change the rules for the nomination process. If they want the nominee to be Christie, it’ll be Christie. > [@](#): > > Only if he’s running against Dennis Kucinich- and probably not even then. I disagree. Christie is a moderate Republican - like used to be throughout the whole northeast. He could easily take New York. Those 29 electoral votes make up the whole difference in **Jonathan Chance** ’s ‘baseline’ electoral votes. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/33 "2013-11-21T19:34:57Z")
I understand your point, bup. I simply think you’re misreading it. It would take a New Yorker to move the needle in New York. There’s no way that would happen. Pennsylvania is more in play than New York if Christie can win over the Philly suburbs but that’s it. Same with Connecticut. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/34 "2013-11-21T19:35:56Z")
> [@bup](#): > > \*Unless \*that Republican is Chris Christie. He can win Democratic ‘locks’ like New Jersey and New York, and has a decent shot at Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Keep in mind two of the likely candidates Christie would be running against would be Clinton or Cuomo. So you can write off New York flipping to the GOP. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/35 "2013-11-21T19:35:56Z")
For reasons already pointed out he’ll never even get through the primaries. Damn shame too; He’s one of the few Republicans I would consider voting for. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/36 "2013-11-21T19:40:24Z")
> [@bup](#): > > No, but they can change the rules for the nomination process. If they want the nominee to be Christie, it’ll be Christie. What do you think they’re going to do? Stop the far right from voting? > [@](#): > > I disagree. Christie is a moderate Republican - like used to be throughout the whole northeast. He could easily take New York. Those 29 electoral votes make up the whole difference in **Jonathan Chance** ’s ‘baseline’ electoral votes. Northeast Republicans are extinct at the federal level, and you are talking about a swing of maybe 20 percentage points in New Jersey and 30 in New York. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/37 "2013-11-21T19:53:19Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > And what skeletons in his closet are you thinking of? I heard rumors on CNN, but they wouldn’t explain … all they said was that if Christie ran for POUS the truth of why he wasn’t chosen to run with Romney would come out in the open. How come no one takes Donald Trump seriously? What if he ran as an independent? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/38 "2013-11-21T19:54:52Z")
> [@Mr\_Quatro](#): > > I heard rumors on CNN, but they wouldn’t explain … all they said was that if Christie ran for POUS the truth of why he wasn’t chosen to run with Romney would come out in the open. That seems to have happened already, but you could say that about lots of candidates. They all have negatives. There could be some serious scandals in there, but the rumor that they might be scandalous doesn’t prove much. > [@](#): > > How come no one takes Donald Trump seriously? Because he’s a clown who is never going to run for president? ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Quatro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bc8723/32.png) [@Mr\_Quatro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Quatro)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/39 "2013-11-21T20:03:22Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > That seems to have happened already, but you could say that about lots of candidates. They all have negatives. There could be some serious scandals in there, but the rumor that they might be scandalous doesn’t prove much. > > Because he’s a clown who is never going to run for president? He has more money and personality than Romney and he could talk Christie into being his running mate. Are they both from NJ or is Trump from NY? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448/40 "2013-11-21T20:05:22Z")
Have you really not noticed that he has pretended two or three different times that he was going to run and then backed out? He’s not running and he will never run. He knows nothing about any political issue and is taken seriously by practically no one. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-we-should-get-used-to-saying-president-christie-yea-or-nay/674448.md?page=3)