Christine O’Donnell to loom large as Conservatives prepare Christie nose holding strategies

I know I’m obsessed with this, but it is going to be Christie for the GOP in 2016. Teabags are going to get onboard, and this RedState diary by davenj1 can be viewed as the blue print for making that a little easier for the party’s base to swallow.

1. Being against Christie is the same as being “for” the Democrat.

All the recent talk that “he’s not conservative enough,” “he’s a RINO,” “he is Romney all over again,” ad nauseum plays nicely into the hands of liberal commentators. Read any liberal website and their view of and rhetoric against of Christie is just a vehemently negative as that coming from certain corners of conservative websites, including this one. Many comments such as, “I would never vote for him” are silly. Assuming Christie is the nominee, who are you going to vote for? Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden? Are you going to write in your favorite conservative du jour? Or are you just going to sit it out and let a Democrat win?

2. A conservative would need to appeal to at least some independents and Democrats to win.

Deny reality as one must, but the simple fact is that in order to win, a nominee needs to win over independents and peel off a few votes from the opposition’s party. A staunch conservative like Ted Cruz may appeal to the staunch conservative, but does anyone really believe he will win the votes of independent voters in states like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania? Less and less people in the voting population identify with a political party and now list themselves as “independent.” In fact, this is a more important group than trying to win the Hispanic, the female, or the black vote.

3. Christie is a pro who will not make a bunch of unforced errors.

So many things can happen between point A and point B. But, there is one certainty with Christie: there will not be a debilitating gaffe. There will be no “Todd Akin moment.” We will not hear about dabbling in witchcraft in his past, or his views on masturbation a la Christine O’Donnell- perhaps the greatest example of the goofiest conservative pulling defeat from the jaws of victory in recent history. The more conservative elements got their wish in that they did not get Mike Castle in 2010; instead they got Chris Coons.

4. Christie is a tough guy who will not be defined by his opponents.

One of the biggest criticisms I have heard against Christie is that he is a bully, or that he is gruff. Does anyone seriously believe Christie will allow Democratic and liberal operatives to define him in a presidential campaign? If the other criticisms are correct, Christie will eat them alive…literally.

5. The “he hugged Obama” criticism is stupid.

Any concession by Democrats (in New Jersey) no matter how small it is could be considered a victory by a Republican Governor. And what is one of the biggest complaints against Christie? What leads many to question his conservative credentials? There are several that I have come across, but the one that sticks in the craw of most is his “embrace of Obama” after Hurricane Sandy. To this writer, I am ind of confused as to what the proper conservative response and protocol is when any president visits one’s state in the wake of a major natural disaster. Avoidance? Stand away from Obama when the pictures were taken?

6. Christie really is super conservative.

Christie is pro-life, but realistic. A Texas-type abortion law in New Jersey would probably never even make it out of a legislative committee, so for Christie to beat the pro-life drum is wasted political capital. With regards to gay marriage, he stands opposed as evidenced by his veto of a gay marriage law. He then suggested that the voters of New Jersey should be given the chance to veto his veto. But, there was absolutely no movement in Trenton to get gay marriage on the ballot this year or even next year. Thus, the practical effect was that Christie staved off the inevitable in New Jersey for over a year and it became a reality only because of the New Jersey supreme court. He could have appealed that decision and likely would have lost and cost the state money for what? To prove a point to the Republican conservative “base?”

Christie pulled out of a regional climate change compact while still touting green energy. What he is “touting” is bringing green energy jobs to New Jersey if there is to be this industry. Wind turbines and solar panels pre-date Obama; the green energy industry is nothing new.. It would make perfect sense for GE to manufacture wind turbines in New Jersey rather than China if business conditions were right. Should GE make an announcement tomorrow saying they are building a wind turbine plant in the US, you can rest assured governors from every state- red and blue- would be competing for that factory.

7. The tea Party wave has crashed.

Ken Cuccinelli lost his race in Virginia and Dean Young lost the Republican primary runoff in Alabama’s First Congressional district which is tantamount to losing the general election. In fact, looking at the past, Tea Party candidates have not really fared that well come Election Day. There have been some high profile victories, but in terms of raw numbers, the story is much different. Simply, they have greater success in primaries, not general elections.

8. Christie has an actual electoral path to the White House.

First, let’s dispose of this belief that if Christie is the nominee, Republicans will lose the electoral votes in the South. …The electoral votes in the South are not going to a Democrat any time soon except perhaps in Florida and Virginia. But, conversely since the GOP can dismiss the Northeast (except perhaps New Hampshire), Republicans are left with the upper Midwest to look for electoral votes. So, who plays better in the likes of Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and maybe Pennsylvania? Obviously, Christie would clearly widen and open that electoral map more than a Ted Cruz, Rand Paul or an Allen West.

9. Somebody is going to be holding their nose, it might as well be the GOP’s conservatives.

There is no prototypical, archetypal conservative super man or woman that will satisfy everyone all the time. What is the point of fighting the good principled, dogmatic fight only to lose? If that is the case, then Ron Paul should have been the Republican nominee long ago. It can certainly be done locally or even on a statewide basis, but not nationally. If conservatives are serious about winning the presidential election in 2016, they need to stop acting like Democrats as far as infighting and open criticism of fellow Republicans. Conservatives have problems with Chris Christie, but liberals and Democrats have even bigger problems with him and that may be the bottom line.