Gov. Christie on the presidency and his peacemaker potential
Gov. Chris Christie may be tired of being asked if he is going to run for president in 2016 but until he makes a formal announcement, he will continue to be asked, as he was again on Thursday night's "Ask the Governor" program.
Christie again refused to answer, but he did suggest that he could be the voice of reason and moderation as president. He also said he could rein in the partisanship of Congress and keep the peace.
"I'm always motivated by actually accomplishing things," Christie said, "and so you could safely assume that if I ever decide to run for president, it would be predominantly because I felt like I could make a difference in actually moving the country forward and getting things done."
On the flip side, Christie said, "If I felt like that was an impossible task, either for me personally or for anybody, I probably wouldn't run."
In the past, Christie has said a 2016 presidential run would have to be right for him, his family and the country. Traveling to 35 states, plus Washington, D.C., to raise funds as chairman of the Republican Governors Association (RGA) gave him and his family a taste of what a presidential campaign would demand.
What did his family think about hectic travel schedule?
"Well, they missed me which was good.," Christie said. "We did pretty well at keeping in touch with each other. I think it went okay. It's a good trial run for all of us to take a look at what it's like to be out on the road that much."
Gridlock and partisan rancor in Congress have often been targets of Christie's trademark wrath and insults. Thursday night he said he could be the type of president who would force the contending factions in Congress to play nice and get things done.
"I think that I've done a pretty good job here (in New Jersey) at that," Christie said. "It doesn't mean that we don't bicker, but we've actually gotten stuff don, which is what people care about the most in the end. They'll put up with the background noise of the back and forth if you actually show them results."
Despite the fact that Republicans have control of both the Senate and the House for the first time since 2006, President Barack Obama on Wednesday vowed to work across the aisle.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) echoed Obama's bipartisan message later that same day. But the president also promised to quickly act on immigration reform if Congress does not, which could quickly turn the mood sour.