Christie leaves just as his political luck in N.J. has stalled, as Democrats in the Legislature look into Race to the Top error
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Gov. Chris Christie speaks Tuesday during a press conference in Bayonne. TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie leaves this morning for a whirlwind month-long political tour that will have him stumping for nearly a dozen fellow Republicans from Iowa to Illinois to Ohio.
Christie's trips, paid for by the campaigns he is assisting, begin with a one-day stop starting today in Los Angeles, where he is scheduled to appear at a town hall event with GOP gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman and then headline fund-raisers to aid Whitman's campaign against onetime presidential candidate Jerry Brown. From California, Christie is scheduled to head to New Mexico before returning to New Jersey.
After a weekend at home, Christie is to head back out next week to the key swing state of Ohio.
Christie is flying on chartered planes and is scheduled to depart today from Morristown Municipal Airport.
After beating Democratic incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine last year, Christie has seen his stock in Republican circles continue to rise. His status as a party celebrity was only compounded by his war with public-sector unions and the budget cutting that marked his rookie year in office.
Christie does leave New Jersey as his political luck seems to have stalled, however. As Christie is traipsing around the United States, Democrats back home continue pounding away at the loss of $400 million in federal education aid caused by a mistake on an application filed by the Christie administration. In the wake of the blunder, the governor fired his education commissioner and is now contending with public hearings and investigations led by his opponents in the Democratic Party, who control the Legislature.
Christie adviser Mike DuHaime said the governor is sought after by officials and candidates outside New Jersey because he represents a breed of politician who is honest and gets down to business. DuHaime said Christie is going to be promoting his home state everywhere he speaks.
In advance of his travel, Democratic National Committee spokesman Michael Czin issued a statement tying the governor to the Republican administration of George W. Bush.
"Governor Christie should spend a little more time doing the hard work of governing and little less time playing movie star and campaigning for a slate of candidates that want to bring back Bush's failed economic policies," Czin said.
