Perdido 03

Perdido 03

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Chris Christie Has Bloomberg-Level Approval Ratings In New Jersey

So much for the governor's supposed popularity in Jersey:

By 5:1, NJ Voters Say Governor Christie Should Not Run for President in 2012: New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie, beloved by some and despised by others for his bluntness, has a Minus 18 job approval today as speculation continues about whether Christie should run for President. 38% of NJ adults approve of the job Christie is doing, 56% disapprove.

According to this latest Eyewitness News Poll conducted by SurveyUSA exclusively for WABC-TV in New York City, NJ voters by 5:1 say Christie should not run for President.

* By 2:1, NJ voters say Christie would be a worse president than Barack Obama.
* Obama carried NJ in 2008 by 15 points. Obama's approval rating in NJ today is Plus 14 (54% approve, 40% disapprove).
* Voters split evenly on whether Christie would be better president than George W. Bush.

Christie has cut state spending on education. In those Jersey homes where a school teacher lives:

* Christie's job approval is Minus 30 (33% approve, 63% disapprove).
* 6:1 say Christie should not run for president.
* 5:2 say Christie would be a worse president than Obama.

In union households:
* Christie's job approval is Minus 36 (31% approve, 67% disapprove).
* Obama's job approval is Plus 15 (55% approve, 40% disapprove).
* 8:1 say Christie should not run for president.
* 2:1 say Christie would be a worse president than Bush.

* Among Republicans, Christie's job approval is Plus 29. But: by 2:1, Republicans say Christie should not run for President.
* Conservatives by 2:1 and Republicans by 3:2 say Christie is qualified to be President.
* Conservatives and Republicans by 3:1 say Christie would make a better President than Obama.
* Even among the state's comparatively few Tea Party members, where Christie's approval is Plus 49, there is division: 38% say Christie should run for the White House, 39% say he should not.

* Among Independents, Obama's job approval is Plus 7, Christie's is Minus 11.
* Among Moderates, Obama's job approval is Plus 28, Christie is Minus 23.
* Among lower-income voters, Christie is Minus 32. Among upper income voters Christie is Minus 5.


So many interesting things here.

First, just who are the 33% of teachers who approve of the job Christie is doing as governor?

Christie is on a one-man crusade to vilify teachers as "political thugs" who use their students like "drug mules," to slash teacher salaries and benefits and tenure and job protections, to privatize NJ schools and sell off as much as the state as he can to corporations.

But 33% of teachers approve?

Sheesh! Talk about not voting your interests.

That said, there is lots of good news if you're opposed to the governor's policies and his further political career.

He has a -18 approval rating, with self-described "moderates" Christie has a -23 rating and with "independents" he has a -11 rating.

This is a governor who would face an uphill battle for re-election if there were a good candidate to oppose him.

Also, this poll shows that the fraidy cat Dems can stop cowering when the behemoth bully shouts at them. They can take him on - he is NOT popular, and if they coordinate their attacks and continue to hammer on Christie's hypocrisies, his brutal policies toward working and middle class people, and his overall ugliness of character, they can beat this guy.

When self-described "moderates" give Christie a -23 rating on approval, you know that Christie's bluster and bullying is beginning to backfire.

Now if only some of this plunge would wipe off onto his Democratic buddy next door in NY State.

But let's see how things shape up after the Cuomo budget becomes reality and people see just what these cuts mean to services around the state.

Again, Dems (Let's be honest here, Cuomo is more popular with Republicans than he is with Dems) have got to have the courage to take him on.

That time will come, and Cuomo is doing himself no favors by taking on legislature members in their own districts a la Spitzer over the property tax cap.

If the "rising star" Chris Christie can end up at Bloombergian levels of popularity, then so can Cuomo.

So come on, Dems - show some guts and take on Christie here in NJ.

And Cuomo in NY ought to be next.

POSTSCRIPT: WABC 7 reports the Dalai Lama is in Newark to work for peace and democratic solutions to violence.

He ought to start in Trenton at the Governor's office.

Wasn't it Christie who wanted to take a bat to an old lady he disagreed with?

UPDATE: Looks like Dems are getting the message that it's cool to attack Christie - Frank Lautenberg blistered Christie and sell-out Dems today:

At a speech at the Democratic State Convention this afternoon, U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) ripped into Gov. Chris Christie for cutting funding for family planning centers and other social programs.

At the “Women’s Step Up Luncheon,” Lautenberg called Christie’s cuts “shameful” and said he was “working to destroy the progressive state we’ve built.”

Lautenberg went on to criticize Democrats who have forged alliances with the governor, though he did not single them out by name.

“We see some Democrats sitting on their hands and even in some cases helping the Republicans, trying to move over on the other side to make up a few votes,” said Lautenberg. “It won’t help New Jersey if we leave the ranks of Democrats.”

Lautenberg’s speech only got more heated as it went on. He pointed out Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver and noted that Christie had once called one of her claims a “lie.”

“Gov. Christie actually called (Oliver) a liar in the press. Imagine Gov. Christie calling someone else a liar?” he said. “He’s the king of the liars.”

Oliver then took to the podium, saying she’s usually the only woman in the room when she meets with the Christie.

“Once in a while Lieutenant Gov. Kim Guadagno is able to be there, though she never says anything,” said Oliver. “And without question, I am the only person of color in that room. Now that is not reflective of the State of New Jersey."


In response, a Christie spokesman mocked Democrats and asked if they were enjoying the beach.

That's cool.

Christie and his people live by the mockery, but they'll perish by the mockery too.

Looks like while Christie was taking victory laps with Michelle Rhee on education reform, NJ voters were turning on him.

3 comments:

  1. Christie and his ppl are laughing b/c they have a big corporate future ahead of them. He managed to use the bully pulpit to make himself enough of a minor celebrity that he can kill on the speaker's market.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's a good point, Mark. But we'll see - guys like him with mouths like that sometimes say things that damage themselves and those kinds of futures.

    We'll see. But I tend to think you're right.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Well it sorta happened w/ Rhee, but there's so much fawning that journos are loathe to burn her down after they built her up. Most public figures would have found their media love affair completely over if they'd libeled a reporter in the way she did. Maybe there's a lot of pressure to keep her rep afloat as she's the great privatization trojan horse.

    btw thanks for the link love

    ReplyDelete