The Other McCain

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CHRISTIE SAYS ‘NO’ (AGAIN)
UPDATE: ‘Now Is Not My Time’

Posted on | October 4, 2011 | 70 Comments

UPDATE 1:07 p.m. ET: “Now is not my time,” the New Jersey governor says in his press conference statement. “This is not the time to leave unfinished business. . . . Like it or not, New Jersey, you’re stuck with me.”

In response to reporters’ questions, he says, “It did not feel right” to quit a job he’d worked so hard to get.

UPDATE 1:15 p.m. ET: “I’m not prepared to make any endorsements today,” he says, by which he means, Romney hasn’t asked yet.

UPDATE 1:22 p.m. ET: “I am who I am — there’s not a lot of varnish here,” Christie says. In response to a question, he dismisses talk of himself as the GOP running mate, saying there’s nobody in America who thinks he’s temperamentally suited to being No. 2.

UPDATE 1:27 p.m. ET: Talking of his his conversations with other people who had run for president — including, by inference, the Bushes — Christie says, “No one to me endorsed the joy of running for president.” This rather confirms my suspicion that some Team Bush people (e.g., Bill Kristol) were key figures behind the Christie boomlet.

* * PREVIOUSLY (11:10 a.m. ET) * *

Robert Costa of National Review broke the story this morning.

UPDATE: The New Jersey governor has said “no” many times before, but Monday the story got out that he would make an announcement Thursday. Now there is a 1 p.m. press conference scheduled today in Trenton.

UPDATE II: Jonathan Karl of ABC News confirms:

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will not run for president, according to a source with direct knowledge of the governor’s thinking.
By deciding not to run Christie is refusing the pleas of many establishment Republicans who have been urging him — even pleading with him to jump into the race. Dozens of high-level GOP donors have been paying visits to Christie since this spring in the hopes of changing his mind. . . .
On Sept. 24 sources close to the Republican governor told ABC News that “the pressure from donors and other people has intensified,” and that the “volume of calls” urging Christie to run had increased.
That was before Christie came face-to-face with some of the big-money GOP contributors who were hoping to lure him into the race during week-long fundraising tour that took him to Missouri, California and Louisiana. But it was at a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., last Tuesday where Christie heard some of the most passionate please to date. . . .

Why did pressure for Christie to run intensify Sept. 24? That was two days after Rick Perry’s meltdown in the Orlando debate, and the same day Herman Cain won the Florida straw poll.

UPDATE III: The Washington Post:

Christie was heavily courted to reconsider by large Republican donors as well as a handful of elected officials and party activists in key states.  That recruitment process picked up steam following several mediocre debate performances by Texas Gov. Rick Perry, showings that raised doubts about his ability to unite the party and beat President Obama next fall. . . .

(“Mediocre debate performances”? Like the Hindenburg had a “mediocre” landing at Lakehurst, N.J.)

The lone figure yet to announce her plans for 2012 is former Alaska governor Sarah Palin who has pushed back her timeline to make a decision from September to November.

So unless Sarah gets in, this is the final field. I’m sure Chris Crocker T.C. Lynch will be relieved.

UPDATE IV: Ed Morrissey at Hot Air:

The only way a late entry will work is with someone with high name recognition and a positive intensity among Republicans, and that’s not the position in which Christie finds himself today.

If Palin would say “no,” we could rally conservatives behind Herman Cain. If Palin would endorse Herman Cain, it would be a full-tilt boogie all the way to the nomination in Tampa. But as long as Palin is a “maybe,” there will be tens of thousands of grassroots conservatives waiting and praying for her to say “yes.”

UPDATE V: Headline of the day by Gabriel Malor at AOSHQ:

Today’s Schedule:
Chris Christie Presser at 1:00pm;
Bill Kristol Suicide at 1:05pm

PREVIOUSLY:


Category: Chris Christie, Election 2012, New Jersey

Comments

70 Responses to “CHRISTIE SAYS ‘NO’ (AGAIN)
UPDATE: ‘Now Is Not My Time’”

  1. richard mcenroe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:14 pm

    Dammit. I shouldn’ta revealed the secret plan to Stacy last night. Scared the RNC right off

  2. richard mcenroe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:16 pm

    In related news, a disappointed Icelandic whaling fleet disguised as the Iranian navy has turned back north…

  3. Bill Kristol
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:27 pm

    For a fat chick, he is hard to woo. 

  4. richard mcenroe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:41 pm

    Although the weight is the easiest gag, I was worried about the asthma, too.
    “It’s three a.m. The EPA has banned your inhaler. The phone rings. What are you going to do?”

  5. TC_LeatherPenguin
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:46 pm

    Costa, Kristol, and various other morons in the pundocracy kept hyping that Christie was re-thinking all those “I’m not running” statements, and was going to throw away his reputation as a straight talking guy who tells you where he stands and doesn’t care if it ticks you off… based on anonymous “sources” who likely would face the wrath of Fatty McAwesome if they dared say such statements on the record.

    Chumps; wish-casting, idiotic Beltway Bozos. They’re part of the reason the GOP is called “The Stupid Party.”

  6. Dianna Deeley
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:46 pm

    Why does Chris Christie keep having to hold press conferences to explain, again, that he’s not going to run for president?

    Good things about him: he seems to have a clue fiscally, and he tends to say what he means.

    Bad things about him: he’s a big-government kind of guy, and he doesn’t really back the second amendment.

    Conclusion: I like him, but I don’t want him for president.

  7. Dianna Deeley
    October 4th, 2011 @ 3:48 pm

    I know he’s, um, round? But really, he’d be disappointing as a whale.

  8. Zilla of the Resistance
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:02 pm

    It doesn’t matter how many times the islamoblow says he won’t run, cocktail party elitists will keep hyping him like he’s fat Jesus. They are as bad as Obamazombies. Never mind all the islamocoddling, he’s a big youtube star! Jackasses. And Greta Van Sustern is among the worst of them, every single candidate she interviews and every single guest she has, regardless of who they are, gets asked if they hope (like she does) that islamoblow Christie will run and what it would mean if he did.  As if nobody else was already running, as if nothing else were going on in this country, it has become all Christie (anything but the truth about him being an islamoblow) all the time and it is sickening. Jackasses.

  9. whoopi
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:04 pm

    But he didn’t say he’s not running-running…

  10. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:04 pm

    Why is a sizable segment of the establishment so lukewarm on Romney? In theory, shouldn’t they be crazy about Romney? Do they fear that he has electability issues (e.g., Mormonism)?

  11. Joe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:10 pm

    The GOP establishment would be just fine with Romney.  He is one of them.  They fear his electability issues–but that goes well beyond any LDS animous (which is an issue with a minority of voters but not an overwhelming one).  The big issue is his Massachusetts health plan.  They know a lot of conservatives do not want a come along, get along from a GOP president, they want him to hold the line.  Christie M.O. on that is even worse than Romney, but the GOP establishment thinks we are stupid.   

  12. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:14 pm

    It’s not just that Mitt has MassCare hanging around his neck, but that HE WON’T ADMIT IT WAS A MISERABLE FAILURE. If he’d just nut up and admit that, then promise not to do anything even remotely like it again, he’d be unstoppable. Instead, he’s spawned a cottage industry of “Anybody But Mitt” candidates.

  13. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:19 pm

    I don’t think it’s just being lukewarm on Romney and in the end I doubt it’s just electability. The elitists are afraid that the wingnuts will manage to select a wingnut for the nomination and if said wingnut wins would destroy their hold on the Republican party.

  14. Mortimer Snerd
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:23 pm

    (“Mediocre debate performances”? Like the Hindenburg had a “mediocre” landing at Lakehurst, N.J.)

    Or, the Titanic had a “mediocre” maiden voyage?

  15. Christy Waters
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:24 pm

    If the establishment gets REALLY desperate, maybe they can convince Chaz Bono to run as Chris Christie, when she’s done with her gig on DWTS, and for a not-so-small fee, of course. Now, that would be a new twist on a Manchurian candidate.

  16. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:27 pm

    Yes, we know MassCare is a miserable failure, but didn’t some of the GOP elites and/or policy wonks advise Romney during that legislative process?

    Also, the unfortunate reality (or so the political “experts”/advisors say) is that admitting past failures rarely pays dividends. When election day arrives, the low-information voters (which is most of them) go into the booth, see a name and think, “Isn’t he that failure guy?”  

  17. Mortimer Snerd
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:28 pm

    Yes, if he entered the race he would unquestionably be the most well-rounded candidate.

  18. ECM
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:29 pm

    I’m sure a deal could be arranged where s/he is paid in, um, sausage.

  19. ECM
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:30 pm

    He’s great in Jersey–glad he’s staying there.

  20. Joe Scarborough
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:31 pm

    http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65013.html

    I guess the fat lady is singing.  And it is breaking my heart.  Why do we let these teabaggin rabble mess up our plan? 

  21. Joe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:35 pm

    He is such a pussy about one flip flop too many.  Just talk straight to us Mitch.  Point out why Masscare was a state plan, how states experiment, what went wrong, what we learn from that, and why Obamacare is going to be a massive disaster if it is implemented. 

    This was a potential opportunity for Romney and he screwed it up.  And that worries me. 

  22. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:42 pm

    Good points, except that perhaps we shouldn’t exaggerate the point about the GOP establishment thinking we’re stupid. Yes, they probably (naively?) believed that Christie – with his confrontational videos, etc. – would generate more excitement among the base than would Romney and that, because Christie would be a new face, it would be easier to sell him as a legit conservative. But they also know that the people who are most opposed to Romney have already figured out Christie, or would do so in short order.

    Sure, Romney has potential electability issues (LDS, MassCare, flip flopper). But, in this case, some establishment folks were pushing Fatty McAwesome, who obviously would have had hjis own serious flaws as a television candidate.  

    Thus, it’s probably also true that some establishment folks simply like Christie better than Romney, for whatever reason. Maybe they see Christie as a fiscal hawk, yet also as someone who can fit in at cocktail parties (Romney is a teetotaller). Maybe some of these people have already been elbowed out of the future Romney Express and thus hoped to hitch a ride on the Christy landboat instead?   

  23. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:44 pm

    And by “wingnuts” you mean . . . us!

  24. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:44 pm

    But wouldn’t have Christie’s entrance into the race increased the chances of a wingnut landing the nomination? As it is, things are breaking very well for Romney, unfortunately. Perry is reeling and it’s not clear that Cain is really serious about being atop the ticket.

  25. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:48 pm

    Yes, and this past weekend, the Gators had a mediocre performance against the pros from Bama.

  26. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 4:51 pm

    If it had been Christie v. Obama: the most well-rounded candidate v. the most well Red candidate.  

  27. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:01 pm

    In the NYT this morning, David Brooks – whose audience is establishment Republicans – makes the case for Romney: 

    http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/04/opinion/brooks-in-defense-of-romney.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all.

    That Brooks has to make this case to his establishment readers is telling.

  28. Joe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:05 pm

    The pork product of choice in New Jersey is Taylor Ham. 

  29. Charles Johnson
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:14 pm

    You know who you are. 

  30. WyBlog - Chris Christie is not running for president. Really. He's NOT running. So stop asking, OK?
    October 4th, 2011 @ 1:35 pm

    Chris Christie is not running for president. Really. He’s NOT running. So stop asking, OK?…

    Well, The Announcement has come, and gone. Chris Christie is leaving the GOP at the altar. At a 1 PM statehouse news conference he said what he’s said 67,214 times before ? he’s not ready to run for president in 2012….

  31. Joe
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:38 pm

    I am not sure why Christie is so much better than Romney.  Frankly, other than Masscare, I like Romney slightly better on the issues than Christie (neither are my choice in the primaries).  Now I love Christie TV style, but without more…it is just style. 

  32. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:54 pm

    The Masscare issue is the mandate. His attempts to defend it and differentiate it from the Obamacare mandate by seeking cover behind a bullshit 10Th amendment argument are simply indefensible. The fact that he thinks the states or localities have the power to restrict our rights makes him incapable of getting the nomination I think the elites sense this, perhaps based on Mitts inability to get higher than 25% in polls, but the elites don’t understand why, that’s why they think, erroneously, that Christie is the answer.

  33. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:56 pm

    The mandate is indefensible on any level.

  34. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 5:57 pm

    Aye, and proudly so.

  35. Dianna Deeley
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:03 pm

    I’ll confess to liking Christie – he’s been very good about explaining what’s necessary to New Jersey voters, and it’s refreshing to hear.

    None of which means that I’d vote for him in a primary, for other reasons mentioned above. But mostly, he kept saying he wasn’t running, and I took him at his word. If he’d gone back on that word, I would presently be deeply opposed to him, with that as my first point.

    YMMD, and that’s all to the good. I’m glad Christie is staying in New Jersey.

  36. ThePaganTemple
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:14 pm

    That’s it in a nutshell. Christie won’t rock the establishment boat, which is ironic in itself, as if it was a literal boat he’d capsize it. But with him at the helm it would be business as usual, the typical pay-for-play, earmarks-gone-hog-wild, and traditional K-Street lobbyist money-laundering. He’s the only well-known Republican candidate who they think they can depend on who they were convinced could win, wrongly I think.

    On the other hand, everybody is so convinced that Obama is fated to lose re-election I think it’s drove a lot of these people over the edge into near insanity with power lust.

  37. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:21 pm

    It probably would increase the chance of nominating a wingnut but the elite doesn’t understand that. The answer to the question you posed earlier, ” perhaps we shouldn’t exaggerate the point about the GOP establishment thinking we’re stupid.”(?) You didn’t mean it as a question but the answer is, we can’t exaggerate how stupid the GOP establishment thinks we are, it’s simply not possible. They believe we can be entertained into acquiescence to another squish by funny YouTube videos. They sense that Mitt isn’t going to get the nomination but haven’t a clue why, because by their lights he’s nearly perfect. They are more afraid of “us” than they are of Obama. The truly sad part is that the purpose that they would sacrifice this country for, will fail in any case. The Elites will lose control of the Republican party either because liberty loving conservatives gain ascendancy within it or it collapses because conservatives give up on saving it.

  38. ThePaganTemple
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:22 pm

    That’s the standard wisdom, but I doubt it, as Mittens would have probably dropped out after the fourth or fifth primary, especially if Christie won New Hampshire, and Huntsman’s numbers are so low he would only be a factor if the margins between Romney and Christie were razor thin.

    I look for Newt to rise now. He’s already rose to double digits. Him I could tolerate as standard bearer, provided he disavow his previous AGCC stance.

    Things aren’t that good for Romney. He’s never gotten as high as thirty percent in any poll I know anything about, and now he’s hovering right around 24%. And you have to wonder how much of that is firm support for the Romulan versus the RINO need to have anybody but a knuckle-draggin’, gun-totin’ conservative.

  39. rosalie
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:33 pm

    And poor Ann Coulter is crying in her beer.

  40. rosalie
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:37 pm

    He’s not capable of “talking straight.  He’s just another RINO like Christie. 

  41. Bob Belvedere
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:42 pm

    Methinks PGlenn wins this round [drum roll / cymbal crash!].

  42. Bob Belvedere
    October 4th, 2011 @ 6:44 pm

    She really disappointed on this one.

  43. Adjoran
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:02 pm

    But what if it turns out they are the same person?

  44. Adjoran
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:07 pm

    I agree.  Besides, the story would have been a good one – the Democratic legislature refused to authorized premium increases for the private insurers just because Democrats are idiots, which led to a “Mass. exodus” of private carriers, costs and claims rose higher than projected (which has been the story of health care in America since WWII anyway), so the grand plan didn’t work.

    Short version:  “We can’t really have ANY ‘social programs’ if Democrats are allowed near them, because they always screw things up.”

  45. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:09 pm

    Yummmmmmm Porkroll 😉

  46. Adjoran
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:13 pm

    Christie only allowed this boomlet to flourish because the pressure was coming from people who were writing him large checks.  It seemed impolite to tell those people, “Are you freakin’ deaf?  HELL NO I’m not running!” especially before they signed their name at the bottom of the check.

    So he assured all those fine check-writers on his national check-finding tour that he would give it serious thought one more time, just because he had such faith in their judgment (not to mention their ability to write checks).  The result was never in doubt, not for a minute, not for a nano-second.

  47. Adjoran
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:22 pm

    All this talk about the Republican “Establishment” and “Elite” is laughable.  Some speak as if this is some grand conspiracy – but composed of people too dumb use their massive power in any way, it seems, or even to keep their big conspiracy secret, as their plans are known and thwarted by every flaky blog commenter on the internet.

    Yeah, that’s one scary Establishment. 

    Do you all remember to check under your beds at night to make sure some Establishment Republican isn’t camping out to drain your will as you sleep?

    Do you realize that the only true “Republican Establishment” figures nominated since WWII were Ford, GHWB, and Bob Dole?  Ike was from outside the GOP elite and quite mistrusted, Nixon was a upstart first, then an outcast, Goldwater an upstart, Reagan mistrusted as a possible flake, W thought to be a flaky Texas goony bird, McCain the “maverick” was a pain in the butt to everybody.

    For all the animus some people have toward it, this “Republican Establishment” has been singularly ineffective in getting its people nominated.

  48. Anonymous
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:26 pm

    Actually she has already reached the acceptance stage.

  49. Christy Waters
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:48 pm

    Being paid with pork products is certainly a deal I wouldn’t be able to refuse! Smokey piggy goodness makes me happy!

  50. Christy Waters
    October 4th, 2011 @ 7:53 pm

    So, it’s actually Chris Christie on DWTS? No wonder he couldn’t run!