Republicans are livid at Gov. Chris Christie for opting to hold a special election instead of appointing a Republican to fill Frank Lautenberg’s Senate seat. GOPers are saying Christie is politically dead to them.
The Republican reaction to Chris Christie decision to listen to the will of the people of his state was immediate outrage.
Deadbeat dad, and former congressman, Joe Walsh tweeted:
And Christie hands the seat to Cory Booker. Not surprised. #RINO
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) June 4, 2013
The National Journal summed up the Republican reaction to Christie’s decision, “That did little to mollify Republicans with a stake in retaking the Senate next year. While none wanted to be quoted publicly, all dripped with disdain for Christie’s decision, calling it self-serving. And several pointed to the fact that holding an extra election one month earlier could cost the state about $25 million–a price tag that could dent his image as a fiscal hawk. ‘I think this ends his 2016 chances. It’s year after year with this guy,’ complained one senior Republican official.”
Over at the Free Republic one exchange summed up how the rank and file seem to be taking the news that at least one Republican still believes in democracy (all names removed):
Commenter # 1: I know Governor Christie. Nice guy. But if there was any thought of voting for him in 2016 after the media anoints him as Hillary’s opponent, that is now gone.
I would sooner write in Lautenberg for President. Both are dead to me.
Commenter # 2: You sir, are a liar. No acting governor would do something so contrary to their political parties best interest and the interest of the people who elected him. Your glossing over his betrayal by saying he is a “nice guy”, just gives cover to the support he has offered to the fraud in the White House.
Republicans are outraged at Chris Christie because he decided that the people should have a voice in this decision. Christie said, “There’s no political purpose. The political purpose is to give the people a voice. The issues facing the United States Senate are too important not to have an elected representative making those decisions.”
Sen. Lautenberg’s unfortunate passing put Gov. Christie in a difficult political position. If he appointed a Republican, he would have been ignoring the will of the voters in his state. He also would have unilaterally flipped a Senate seat. Neither of these outcomes are good for a guy with his eyes on 2016. If Christie would have decided to appoint a Democrat, he would have set the Democrats up to keep the seat in 2014. Christie’s decision was very political in the respect that he managed to keep Cory Booker off the November ballot by scheduling the special election for October.
Christie is no saint here, but he did the right thing for himself and the people of his state. He is going to get to pad his victory margin in November without Booker on the ballot, and the people of New Jersey will get to choose their next senator.
Christie may be dead to some in the Republican Party, but those same people have been calling him a RINO ever since he hugged Obama. Gov. Christie isn’t a liberal, or a RINO. He is just a Republican who is trying to stay in the center because he wants to run for president in 2016.
However, there may not be any room in the GOP for a Republican like Christie. It seems that if you aren’t ignoring or stepping on the will of the people, you aren’t a real Republican.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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