Poll: Should Gov. Chris Christie stay or should he go?

Reports are that the Governor, should he decide to run for president in 2016 will stick around as Governor during his presumptive run.

Two schools of thought.

The first being is that he’s been able to run the state despite being on a non-stop tour of the country as head of the Republican Governor’s Association. Smart phones pretty much keep you in touch with all your support staff whenever you need them.

And he’s been pretty adept at staying in touch with subordinates.

The other school of thought is that running for president is a different animal and will take its toll on him – and that if you thought he wasn’t getting enough sleep touring this past time around – just watch what happens when he (presumably) runs for president.

Should he decide to run, I don’t think he should stick around.

Being Governor is a full-time job. And in a way, he did promise that he’d finish the job he started when he was elected.

While he thinks he has boundless energy to do both, I’m putting my money on his having to give up the Governorship once he makes that decision.

There are also these little factoids to consider.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the SEC prohibits financial firms from making political contributions to candidates if the companies do business for the state in which they (the candidates) are from.

There are quite a few firms in the city that have contracts in New Jersey which could limit the Governor’s access to Wall Street donors if he does run.

And while we hate the fact that money always plays a role in politics (after all, it’s the mother’s milk of politics;) having access to those funds is key to a presidential run.
There’s also this.

The Governor has stated to Iowa pig farmers that he’d veto pending legislation to ban the practice of pigs being kept in gestation crates.

The bill would prohibit the confinement of any sow during gestation. Animal activists argue the practice is inhumane in that it doesn’t allow the pig to stand freely or fully extend its limbs.

“He indicated to us that he was going to veto the bill,” said Bill Tentinger, an Iowa pork producer and former president of the Iowa Pork Producers Association.

“I indicated to him that I could not understand how someone who has never stepped foot on a pig farm … could ever understand (the use of gestation crates) or why they should even have any opinion on the use of them,” Tentinger said by phone. “And he said to me, ‘I agree with you.’”

But still, whether you agree with the bill or not, according to last count, there are only 8 thousand pigs and very few pig farmers in New Jersey.

Not exactly a “top of mind” issue with a majority of Jerseyans. So why bother taking a position on an issue of interest to Iowa pig farmers?

By contrast, there are 2 million pigs in Iowa. And Iowa is a primary state – one of the keys to a candidate who wishes to seek the nomination of his party.

And with all that taken into account, noises have already begun as to who’d succeed the Governor once he makes up his mind. (Senate President Steve Sweeney? Assemblyman John Wiesnewski?)

So 2015, here we come.

Should the Governor give up his post if he decides to run for president?