No matter all the buzz of late suggesting that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie might jump into the race for the Republican presidential nomination, I’m betting that he won’t.
And if I lose that bet, I’ll wager twice as much that he doesn’t win the GOP nod.
The people who see Christie as the answer to the party’s general dissatisfaction with its current crop of White House hopefuls just haven’t thought this thing through. They’ve fallen in love with the man’s straight-talking style — and ignored the substance of some of things he says.
On several occasions over the past five months, I’ve explained (HERE and HERE) that Christie has foreclosed upon any presidential bid by staking out positions on global warming and Islamophobia that run counter to the prevailing attitudes among the GOP’s Tea Party types.
And now, Dan Amira of New York magazine has ADDED three more issues — immigration, gun control and education — to the list of things that right-wingers would hate about Christie if he seeks the Republican nomination.
Sure, Christie could try walking back his previous statements on those matters, but that would only add flip-flopping to the list of conservative grievances against him.
UPDATE: Meanwhile, time is running out for late entrants in the Republican race, as we see HERE.
UPDATE II: Politico offers SEVERAL DOZEN RESPONSES to the question of whether Chris Christie should take the plunge.
By Pat Cunningham
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