Chris Christie Weighs Nearly 400 Pounds... And Lies

You probably heard that billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is hosting a political fundraiser for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at his home in Palo Alto, California on February 13. But that wasn't the only thing that Christie was in the news for this week. Hammered by far right-wing fanatic, Chris Chocola, fuehrer of Club for Growth, for fighting for federal aid to help New Jersey residents pulverized by Hurricane Sandy, Christie decided to try to win back some right-wing cred by denouncing President Obama's Inaugural Speech. He joined a chorus of partisan right-wing hacks blaming GOP obstructionism on... who else-- President Obama!

Buoyed by high popularity ratings-- primarily from Democrats-- Christie tried to mollify Republicans like Chocola who consider him a kiss-ass to Obama.

“Instead of trying to bring people together it was a manifesto for, ‘Hey, it’s my way or the highway,’” Christie said on the monthly radio program Ask the Governor.

“We’re going to see how he acts moving forward,” he added, saying there’s still an opportunity for the president to do the right thing by being a leader that brings political parties together.

The governor was fielding a question from a caller who asked how the governor’s “brand” of being a GOP governor in a blue state could influence the Republican Party.

“If there’s any brand here in New Jersey it’s two fold,” Christie said. “One, we get things done in a bipartisan way and, two, we speak our minds and tell the truth whether it’s positive or negative for our political party.”

The governor conceded that any time parties lose two elections in a row that it’s time to “make a reassessment,” but said there’s still “a lot of positives” with the Republican Party.

Chocola said Christie has sown doubts among conservatives about whether he's "a real reformer." (In ConservaSpeak, "real reformer" means willing to end Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance, veterans benefits, etc.) Christie also angered the lunatic fringe this week by denouncing the NRA ad about President Obama's daughters, which he called "reprehensible."

"If he had gone on TV and ranted and raved and pounded his fist about, 'Get me my money for New Jersey, for Sandy relief, and don't screw it up by putting all this pork in there and making everybody else pay for stuff that we don't need right now,' ... If he had done that, he could've fought for his state, and he could've been a hero amongst Republicans," Chocola told The Hill.

Instead, Christie has "created a question in peoples' minds of whether he is the real reformer he describes himself as, or whether he's just like all the rest of them. You know, it's just, 'I'm willing to spend a whole bunch of money we don't need to get mine,'" Chocola said.

Christie famously slammed Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Republicans earlier this month for a decision to delay a vote on Hurricane Sandy relief, following late-night passage of a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff."

"Last night, politics was placed before our oath to serve our citizens," Christie said. "For me, it was disappointing and disgusting to watch."

"There is only one group to blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims: the House majority and their Speaker, John Boehner,” he added.

...Christie initially drew criticism after Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey because he toured the state with President Obama just prior to the Nov. 6 election-- and praised Obama's response to the natural disaster. Many Republicans saw Christie's actions and comments as a tacit endorsement of the president from one of the party's standard-bearers.

Chocola said, however, that the problem wasn't Christie's tour with Obama. Rather, he said Christie should've taken a harder line on extraneous spending in the Sandy aid bill, and his failure to do so may have undermined his attempts to frame himself as a true reformer.

The Club for Growth spent nearly $18 million this last election towards electing conservative candidates to Senate and House races nationwide, but did not play as large a role in the presidential race as some other outside groups.

However, in 2008, the Club worked against Republican primary candidate Mike Huckabee, launching ads that attacked him as "liberal."

Chocola didn't indicate whether the same fate would be in store for Christie if he runs for president in 2016, but he did say the governor may not have a strong record to run on four years from now.

"I think the fact that you have a bombastic guy that is perceived as a straight-talker trying to solve problems is a good thing," Chocola said. "But when it comes time to run, people will really examine what problems he actually solved, and whether he solved them, or he made noise about them. And I don't know the answer to that yet."

Here's Christie blaming Obama for discord in Washington and right after it is a typical Republican congressman, Jeff Duncan (R-SC). Maybe Christie hasn't been watching TV for the past 4 years?