New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie threw cold water on reports indicating he was preparing to back a potential challenger to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The New York Post reported last week Christie, the new head of the Republican Governors Association, and Weschester County Executive Rob Astorino met in Arizona to discuss the possibility of Astorino challenging Cuomo. New York’s governor in the upcoming elections in 2014.
“He has not said he’s running for governor. He didn’t indicate to me that night that he was running for governor,” Christie told reporters during a Monday afternoon news conference in Trenton, NJ, PolitickerNJ reports.
“He didn’t seek support,” Christie insisted. “The nature of our meeting … was essentially me and Mary Pat with Rob [Astorino] and his wife asking us about what it was like to both run for governor with young children and to serve as governor with young children.”
However, Christie explained things are subject to change if Republicans nominate a candidate to challenge Mr. Cuomo.
“That is what happened in Arizona. Now, let me be clear about going forward. As RGA chairman, we’re going to elect Republican governors in every state,” he said. “And once that’s cleared up in New York as to who the republican candidate might be, then we’ll make an assessment at the RGA about the worthiness of investing in that race. But, we’ve been pretty clear about not getting involved in primaries.”
A spokesman for Mr. Astorino didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Republican State Chairman Ed Cox told Fred Dicker on his Talk-1300 radio show, Monday morning, that the Cuomo-Christie-Astorino saga is a sign the Democratic governor is scared of the Westchester County executive.
“I think this shows that Andrew Cuomo is scared of Rob Astorino,” Cox said.
Meanwhile, Fred Dicker reports in a written column in Monday’s NY Post, that Christie’s “bizarre behavior’’ in refusing to say he’ll support a possible GOP challenger to Gov. Cuomo next year could derail his chances to become president, according to unnamed state and national GOP insiders who’ve spoken to The Post.
“Christie already has a problem with many Republicans refusing to forgive him because of his embrace of [President] Obama and his socially liberal policies,” said a nationally prominent GOP operative. “But this bizarre behavior in suggesting he won’t help a Republican defeat a Democratic governor, and a Cuomo no less, could finish off his chances of becoming his party’s nominee for president in 2016.”
Some close to Astorino said they would be dumbfounded by Cuomo’s claim, since not only is Christie responsible for trying to elect GOP governors, he’s also had longstanding friendly relations with Astorino.
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
It would be very dangerous for Christie to endorse someone in the primaries, but as a potential candidate for president and as head of the Republican governors. He has to stay neutral through the primaries.