Sources say the governor is pondering whether to reverse course and run for president in 2012 Watch video
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie shakes hands with attendees after a brief appearance at a Republican campaign rally with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal inside a hangar at Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport. TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie, who revived the possibility of running for president this week, was back in the New Jersey Statehouse today after a chaotic week of raising funds for Republicans and the hopes of supporters.
With speculation about a potential candidacy at full tilt, he was hunkered down and pondering whether to reverse course and throw himself into a grueling presidential campaign, said a source close to the governor.
He didn’t make any public appearances, and his aides and advisers were mum on the issue of a White House run.
Even as pundits parsed Christie’s every move, the governor’s spokesman, Michael Drewniak, said it was just a typical day in the office.
"There’s always plenty to do in the state of New Jersey," Drewniak said.
In the past week, the governor has backed off of more than a year of persistent denials about running for president as a cadre of high-powered backers try to draft him into seeking the Republican nomination.
Most political experts agree there is little time left to decide, and that window narrowed yesterday when the filing deadline to compete in the New Hampshire primary was moved up to Oct. 28. The Florida deadline comes three days later.
Some doubt that Christie will make the jump, citing the difficulty in piecing together a last-minute presidential campaign.
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, who sought the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, poked holes in Christie’s potential run in an appearance yesterday on Fox News.
He said the push for Christie to jump in the race is centered in the Northeast, instead of a nationwide movement.
"He doesn’t have any contacts, he doesn’t have any structure" in key early primary states, Huckabee said.
Christie returned to New Jersey on Thursday night after four days of fundraising across the country for the state Republican Party and candidates elsewhere.
The centerpiece of his trip was a nationally televised speech on Tuesday night at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, in which he criticized President Obama’s style of governing and discussed America’s role in the world.
Although Christie hasn’t , he’s already drawing increased fire from Democrats.
U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) criticized Christie as a "persistent liar" on the MSNBC show "Hardball" last night.
Asked about Christie’s nationwide appeal, Lautenberg said, "The more that people will get to know him across the country, they’ll think differently about him."
On the same show, U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6th Dist.) said Christie has not worked with Democrats to lower unemployment.
"I just wish he would make this decision about whether to run," Pallone said. "New Jersey has a lot of problems that need to be addressed."
He added, "The longer this goes on, I don’t think it helps the state."
Christie is not booked on any of the major weekend talk shows, and his schedule indicates only one appearance, at a National Guard ceremony on Sunday. He is not expected to take questions from reporters, which he hasn’t done for a week.
Keith Davis, the Atlantic County Republican Committee chairman, said Christie would make a strong presidential candidate, but stopped short of making any predictions.
"Only he can answer the question on whether he will run," he said. "The rest is all speculation, and by the end of the day it won’t matter, because it’s his decision."
Megan DeMarco contributed to this report.