A forgettable band of Republican rivals that refuse to embrace the truth: Trump is a criminal

Echo essay by Evan Osnos:

How do you campaign against a political rival for whom there is no conceivable precedent? When the Department of Justice indicted Donald Trump, last week, on counts arising from his handling of classified documents, he became not only the first former President in American history to face federal charges but also the most confounding front-runner ever in a Presidential primary. 

Based on the chaotic debate performance of August 23,  in Milwaukee, the eight band of rivals are long shots for voters to consider as the Republican candidate for president in 2024.

Trump is a candidate for Commander-in-Chief, who now faces thirty-seven counts for refusing to return material related, according to the indictment, to “United States nuclear programs; potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.” Trump, who first came to power assailing his rival, Hillary Clinton, for her storage of sensitive information, is now accused of urging an attorney to “hide or destroy documents,” and of allowing unqualified civilians to see secret files. In one instance, at his golf club in New Jersey, the former President is alleged to have told visitors about a classified “plan of attack” against Iran, and was recorded on tape admitting that “this is still a secret.”

The federal indictment came two months after Trump was indicted in Manhattan on thirty-four counts related to a hush-money (paid to porn star Stormy Daniels) case. Those charges, which he denied, gave him a boost in the polls. The latest counts, which Trump also denies, could further fortify his grip on the Republican Party or, in the fullness of time, they could blast the race wide open. The effect will depend, in part, on the strategic calculations of his opponents.

In Chris Christie’s 2021, book, “Republican Rescue,” the former governor of New Jersey mapped out a high-toned way for Republicans to escape Trump’s dominance and regain the White House. “The infighting has to end. So does the wallowing in the past,” he wrote. “We need to be the party that embraces the truth even when it’s painful.” It was an incongruous message from Christie. In 2016, he called Trump a “caring, genuine, and decent person,” and, four years later, tried to insure his reëlection by prepping him for debates. Christie eventually balked at the effort to overturn the election, but his publisher nevertheless promoted him as “a key Trump insider and longtime friend.”

Maybe....maybe.....the forgettable band of rivals will start facing reality and tell the truth about Donald Trump.  

When former New Jersey Governor Christie entered the burgeoning field of Republican Presidential contenders, he ely, self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog.” The market for Christie’s metamorphosis, however, is not clear; he left office in 2018 with a favorability rating of thirteen per cent, and, in a recent CNN poll, sixty per cent of Some (sane) Republicans are saying that they would not vote for him “under any circumstances.” 

So does Christie have the independence and the rhetorical skill to change Republicans attitudes about Trump's fitness for office? He asked to be viewed anew, as a slashing apostate with a unique power to torpedo Trump’s chances. In a kickoff speech in New Hampshire, on June 6th, he condemned the former President.

"Chris Christie is right that Trump’s behavior was ‘beneath the dignity of the office’", reported the Washington Examiner.

Another long-shot Republican candidate, Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas, called on Trump to “respect the office and end his campaign,” but Hutchinson barely registers in the polls. 

Will stronger candidates follow suit?

Who will break out of the pack of forgettable band of Republican rivals?

Trump’s former Vice-President, Mike Pence, is, like Christie, hoping that a bout of late-onset honesty  😏can fortify a vaporous level of popularity. Most Republican candidates have avoided talking about the violence of January 6th, but Pence, in his campaign-launch speech last week, outside Des Moines, said that Americans “deserve to know” that Trump “demanded I choose between him and our Constitution.” Voters, he added, now face the same choice: “And anyone who asks someone else to put them over the Constitution should never be President again.”

But Pence also revealed the limits of his principles. When asked at a CNN event the night before Trump’s indictment about the ongoing investigations, he declared that “no one’s above the law,” but also, wincing, urged the Justice Department not to indict his former boss, on the ground that it would be “divisive” and “send a terrible message to the wider world.” 

After the news broke, Pence said that he was “deeply troubled to see this indictment move forward.” His predicament will be familiar to another candidate for whom Trump was a patron, Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina, who served as his Ambassador to the United Nations. She calls for a “new generation” of leadership, and touts her perspective as a daughter of Indian immigrants, but has avoided making a sharp break with Trump and his devoted followers. The taint of Trump is not a problem facing Ron DeSantis, who made his name mostly as governor of Florida; his problem appears to be more personal. 

Following a limp début, on a glitchy Twitter livestream, DeSantis has campaigned heavily in Iowa, but wedded himself to an angry, esoteric culture-war lexicon, as if he were focused primarily on winning support from Elon Musk and very online Republicans.

By early this month, most polls had Trump far out front, supported by at least fifty per cent of Republicans—more than double the number for DeSantis, who remains his closest competitor. And though the field has grown to twelve candidates, none of the others poll above single digits. One of the more interesting of them is Tim Scott, of South Carolina, the first Black Republican from the South to be elected to the Senate since Reconstruction. His earnest, sunny odes to Ronald Reagan and to racial progress are popular with Republican donors, which could make him an attractive Vice-President—or a surprise No. 1, if Trump becomes too encumbered by his legal liabilities and DeSantis flames out. In either case, Scott could give Democrats trouble in a tight general election.

The indictment in the documents case could be followed by others—in Washington, Georgia, or elsewhere. It’s tempting to dismiss the field of long shots for their hypocrisies or their eccentricities, but American elections are long and mercurial, and, with Trump engulfed in legal woes, it’s not inconceivable that one of them could end up in the White House. More immediately, their very presence in the race is shaping it, because they stand to split the opposition to Trump and improve his prospects. For that reason, the most vital question Americans face is not who has the confidence to enter the campaign but who will have the courage to speak frankly about Trump and, ultimately, who will have the sense to exit it. ♦

Published in the print edition of the June 19, 2023, issue of The New Yorker, with the headline “Long Shots.”

Republicans must "tell the truth" in preparation for mid-terms 2022

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie says that #TFG tRump should move on and 'tell the truth' about the 2020, presidential election: 

Echo news published in Business Insider, reported by Cheryl Teh.
https://www.businessinsider.com/chris-christie-says-trump-should-tell-truth-2020-election-2021-11?fbclid=IwAR0i5QpmiwBPC-gZtGGOVJZ7uCWKd1VkteHbthB2hhqnU-uQUlPhPLdAx_Y

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said #TFG Donald Trump needs to "tell the truth" about the 2020, election and move on.

Christie also had advice for the GOP, saying that if it wants to build on electoral wins — like Glenn Youngkin's win in Virginia's heated gubernatorial race last week — Republicans need to move past Trump's voter-fraud claims.

In an interview with CNN this weekend, Christie said he thought Trump could be a "very positive force for Republican candidates" in the 2022, midterm elections if he would start "talking about the future and tell the truth about the election and move on."

The former governor spoke to CNN after a Las Vegas event where he addressed supporters at the Republican Jewish Coalition conference. According to the Coalition's website, among the big GOP names at the three-day event were former Vice President Mike Pence, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.  (Maine Writer- HELLO? So, where was The Former Guy?)

Christie told CNN that with the midterms coming up, Trump must decide if he wants to be "a leader for tomorrow or a figure of yesterday."

"We can no longer talk about the past and the past elections — no matter where you stand on that issue, no matter where you stand, it is over," Christie said at the conference, per CNN. "People want us to be direct with them. They want someone to fight for them. But they want them to fight in a way that doesn't hurt their ears."

Christie has broken with Trump in the past on the latter's baseless allegations of voter fraud. 

In fact, last December, Christie called for Trump and the GOP to "accept defeat" after "no evidence" surfaced of electoral fraud.

In September, Christie also asked Republicans to "face the realities of the 2020, election and learn, not hide from them."

"​​We need to renounce the conspiracy theorists and the truth deniers. The ones who know better and the ones who are just plain nuts," Christie said at a September 9 event at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California, per CNN. "We need to give our supporters facts that will help them put all those fantasies to rest."

There is no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2020, election, and the Trump camp's lawsuits alleging voter fraud in states including Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania have failed.

Even so, the former president has continued to call for vote audits in various states. On October 15, Trump called for a vote recount in Pima County, Arizona's second-most populous county after Maricopa County. Trump has also continued to claim the Cyber Ninjas' vote recount in Maricopa County uncovered "undeniable evidence" of fraud, despite the Republican-driven audit confirming that President Joe Biden beat Trump by 261 more votes than were initially counted.

Christie, who ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016, told CNN he would wait until after the midterms to see if he wants to throw his hat into the ring in 2024. He said his decision would hinge on whether he believes he has "the talent, the skill and the ability to be able to win," and not be based on whether Trump is running or not.

Moreover, the former governor has been mired in his fair share of scandals, too. In the 2013, Bridgegate scandal, Christie's staff members were indicted for purposefully closing lanes on the George Washington Bridge to cause massive traffic jams, a move that was theorized to be a retributive political attack on Mark Sokolich, the Democrat mayor of Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Christie was formerly a Trump ally, having supported the former president in 2016, and 2020. He has since blasted Trump's legal team and called them a "national embarrassment," and  slammed Trump's conduct following the January 6, Capitol riot.

Donald Trump protected from unpopularity

Polls show Trump the least popular president ever, plunging even lower- Newsweek

Donald Trump is cared for by White House baby sitters who protect him from his unpopularity

Trump aides show him only positive polls- The Daily Beast

Donald Trump’s aides and advisers have made a habit of showing him only positive polls to cheer him up, Politico reports. 

Aides and advisers cited in the report said they show him polls “designed to make him feel good,” usually those that focus solely on his base. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Trump adviser, said the president is still “in campaign mode” and closely tracks his polling numbers. “I think he’s never really kind of gotten out of campaign mode and I thought he might,” Christie was cited as saying. Several senior aides and advisers said the Trump administration only becomes concerned when support slips in his base, while another official said public pollsters are often seen as “not understanding him.” 

Two other White House officials cited in the report said the strategy of focusing exclusively on polling numbers in Trump’s base was “just not accurate” and producing “delusional” ideas about the president's support.

MaineWriter- This un-presidential behavior (only believing positive polls?) puts the White House staff into a baby sitting mode. Rather than working to raise the badly needed integrity of Donald Trump's stupid Tweets and often incoherent communications, they are gate keeping information that might be "upsetting" to him.

Republican broken clock awards - candidate kudos

As far as I'm concerned, Donald Trump "the Chump" has one redeeming quality as a US presidential candidate. In fact, he's justifiably calling out Senator "Ted" Cruz for not proving his qualifications to be President of the United States, because he was born in Canada.  
This issue must be resolved!  
                                                                        Broken clock awards!

As a matter of fact, a few "persons on the street" interviews, where voters were asked why they support Senator Cruz, received a response about how he's a Constitutional expert! Well, okay, if Cruz is such a Constutitonal expert, why do challenges continue to raise red flags about his Canadian birth? Does Canadian birth disqualify Cruz to run for President? Honestly, it doesn't bother me one bit about where Senator Cruz was born. In fact, as far as I'm concerned, he could've been born on the moon, as long as he's an American citizen. But, the US Constitution may not be so forgiving. Here's the stats: Senator Raphael "Ted" Cruz was born on December 22, 1970,  in Canada. It's certainly odd to read his Wikepedia biography, where there's no name for the location of his birth. This lack of transparency is another reason I believe Senator Cruz is a total hypocrite. Every other Wikepedia biography has a place of birth named in biographies, but I can't find this simple and factual information on Senator Cruz's page.

Therefore, the political broken clock award goes to Donald Trump for raising the "birther" issue as a potential disqualificatoin for the Cruz presidential campaign.

Another broken clock award goes to Governor Chris Christie, for pointing out how inept Florida's Senator Marco Rubio is to be considered for the office of President of the United States. Governor Christie reminded smitten Republican voters about the lack of Rubio's Presidential qualifications. "We're not electing a high school student council president," warned Christie. 

Indeed, Senator Rubio is running for president because he used his Cuban heritage to his advantage in Florida to win elections and gain ethnic support. Nevertheless, Senator Rubio fails whenever he's thrust into the spotlight, given the opportunity to show a "Kennedy-esque" moment. It never happens.

It's unbelievable, but the Republicans are wasting invaluable political time by exposing each others hypocritical positions. Moreover, the Senator Cruz birthplace in Canada might be contrary to the US Constitutional qualfiications to be elected US president.

In my opnion, it's unconcionalbe for Senator Cruz to run for President when the Cosntitutional issue about his birthplace has not been compleely resolved.  

Therefore, Donald Trump "the Chump" deserves credit for raising the Cruz "birther" issue before it reaches the Supreme Court.  

As for Governor Christie's broken clock award, the nation can only say "thank you", because Senator Marco Rubio simply isn't qualified to be President of the United States. 

Republican kudos to Donald Trump and Governor Chris Christie.

Senator Marco Rubio wouldn't be a candidate without the Bush family support

Marco Rubio misses everytine he has the spotlight as a presidential candidate.

Senator Rubio has failed to capture a leadership position when given the national limelight 

It's certainly ironic to realize how Senator Marco Rubio wouldn't be a 2016, presidential candidate, unless the Bush fmaily had supported him to run for his Florida senate seat. 

Yet, the young Florida Senator is now challenging his mentor, Governor Jeb Bush, for the GOP presidential nomination. Nevertheless, given the opportuntiy for Senator Rubio to absorb the national limelight, he fails everytime. Again, at the December 15th, GOP Debate in Las Vegas, the trend for Rubio to stumble continued. In other words, given the opportunity for Senator Rubio to seize the stage and capture the limelight, he stumbled into a confusing conversation with Senator Rand Paul about national surveillance legislation and lost his momentum to speak to the American people.  

Rubio failed his entre to the American people when he perferred drinkign out of a water bottle to taking charge of his opportunity to demonstrate leadership during his national debut following President Obama's 2103, State of the Union speech.

In fact, it was a rough GOP debate for Marco Rubio. He finally got that long-awaited challenge on his previous support for the “Gang of Eight” immigration-law overhaul, which he handled well enough. But, any way you look at it, this puts him to the left of the field on the major animating issue of the Republican campaign. He continually took fire from a surging right wing Senator Ted Cruz and a feisty Rand Paul. He spent much of the debate night on the defensive.

The Daily Beast reports, what Rubio didn’t need on Tuesday night was another establishmentarian, like Chris Christie, putting points on the debate board. Part of the reason Cruz, and Trump and Ben Carson have been so successful has been that the moderate vote is divided among so many candidates; the best thing that could’ve happened for the anti-insurgent effort is for a clear alternative to the Cruz/Trump emerging in the very near future, and that sure didn’t happen at Tuesday night's debate.

Is there a Republican alternative to right wing Donald Trump or Senator Ted Cruz (to loose).

What about Governor Chris Christie? He's the guy who spent the last debate at the GOP kids’ table. Sure, he's a potential alternative, if he can capture New Hampshire and roll into the Southern states with a big win under his belt. But let’s not forget that the Fort Lee traffic jam will continue to haunt him, that he’s squishy on plenty of big issues that are important to the base, that his embrace of President Obama is still ready-made footage for an attack ad, that he’s deeply unpopular in the NJ state he governs and that his temperament hasn’t exactly endeared him to voters outside the Northeast.

But without Christie or Rubio, who is there? Jeb? Or, is anyone still holding out hope for a Governor John Kasich surge?  

Although Rubio seems to have some "beltway buzzz" says The Daily Beast, no one seems to know what primary election he can actually win, especially when it's widely reported that he doesn't have much of a campaign committee in the early voting states.  

Republicans have waited for Senator Rubio to surge in the polls. but it hasn't happened yet. Why?  In my opinion, it's because everytime the junior Florida Senator has the opportunity to rise to the top, instead, he reaches for his "blinky bottle". Moreover, from a strategic point of view, a candidate should be leary of leaving the date they came in with. In other words, Rubio should've embraced the Bush family and never left their limelight. When Rubio challenged the very family who put him in the US Senate, that's just plainly not very nice, especially for a young upstart with no leadership credentials.

It seems to me, Senator Rubio should go back to selling his book and exit the 2016 presidential campaign.  He should throw his support behind Governor Jeb Bush aka "Jeb!" and become as good a disciple as possible.  In being a good "follower" it's possible Senator Rubio might everntually learn how to be a real leader; but he's clearly not ready to be the leader of the free world when he can't even eliminate the unpopular Senator Ted Cruz from the GOP candidate line up.

Rubio might wind up being the last GOP male candidate standing to be nominated for the 2016, presidential campaign. Yet, if that unlikely circumstance becomes reality, I predict, here in Maine Writer, that Rubio's inexperience will cause his candidacy to crash and burn. Better for Rubio to exit, stage right, while he still has a book he can sell.

(In fact, no proverbial "winner" emerged in the December 15th GOP debate in Las Vegas. Rather, the line up looked even more chaotic than ever before.)

Kaci Hickox - Maine must produce evidence for why she should be forced to isolation

Dear Governor LePage and DHHS Commissioner Mary Mahew- please don't waste tax payer money trying to legally isolate one nurse who has no symptoms of Ebola and tested negative for the virus. With all due respect about the concern for public safety and risk of Ebola, you would both better spend your time walking in Maine's neighborhoods where dangerous drug trafficking is overt and epidemic.

Kaci Hickox

Incredulous to have a disease prevention tug of war created over one nurse who has no symptoms of Ebola and has tested negative for the virus. This power struggle between Kaci Hickox with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and with the state of Maine, is absolutely ridiculous. Nurse Kaci Hickox is a professional, she knows how to self monitor and how to advocate for her civil rights. Instead of treating her like she's criminal, let's give her a heroine's welcome home.  In fact, Ms. Hickox has been where the fight to end Ebola needs to happen. She went to the battlegrounds in Western Africa where people are dying from Ebola.  If the world doesn't stop the Ebola outbreak where it has killed thousands of African people, then the fight here in the US will be a wasted effort. Thank you Ms. Hickox for your heroism in caring for Ebola victims and for standing up to senseless isolation rules imposed without any evidence of their effectiveness.

There's no evidence about how mandatory isolation can prevent the spread of Ebola. Nevertheless, the fact is, creating undue stress on professional care givers, like nurses, treating them like criminals, will exacerbate problems involved in trying to control the virus

American fixed wing air transport of Ebola patients using advanced isolation technologies

Republicans, especially New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, too quickly point fingers at the Center for Disease Control (CDC) response to the Ebola outbreak in Dallas Texas. Yet, the fact is the CDC has been involved in developing important transportation isolation technologies to provide quick treatment for infected individuals who need access to urgent care.

Excellent article in the Washington Post about how people infected with Ebola are transported via fixed wing transport back to their homelands for treatment.  Article by Josh Hicks.

When it comes to transporting Ebola victims by air, the world relies on just one small U.S. company.

Phoenix Air, a jet-charter service based in Cartersville, Ga., has flown 15 infected patients, including Europeans who worked in West Africa and five individuals who were treated in the United States — doctor Kent Brantly, photojournalist Ashoka Mukpo, missionary Nancy Writebol, and nurses Nina Pham and Amber Vinson.

Now the Defense Department is stepping up. The Pentagon this week said it is developing portable isolation units for use on its military aircraft, as thousands of U.S. troops head to West Africa to help combat the outbreak. The modules are expected to be tested next month and deployed in C-17 and C-130 transport planes by January.

“This system is being developed out of an abundance of caution, to reassure our service members working in Ebola-affected areas,” said Pentagon spokeswoman Jennifer Elzea. “There are no plans for DOD personnel to provide direct patient care, and therefore the exposure risk remains low” for troops, Elzea said.

The Obama administration has not decided whether it will use the isolation systems to transport non-military patients.

“This particular capability remains under development, so it would be premature to speak to its potential use,” said White House spokesman Ned Price.

One thing is for sure: The military transports would have greater capacity. Phoenix Air can fly only one infected individual at a time, whereas the military’s isolation units will hold up to 12 patients.

The Pentagon declined to share information about the development costs for the transport modules, saying the contract has not been finalized.

The tent-like isolation chambers mainly consist of a metal frame, a plastic liner and an air-filtration system. For the Phoenix Air flights, one doctor and two nurses attend to each patient.

After each patient is transported, the company sprays toxic disinfectant inside the module for 24 hours and sends the contents — including the plastic, the stretchers and even the walkie talkies — off for incineration by a federally licensed hazardous-materials disposal team.

Phoenix Air created three isolation units in 2011 with help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Defense Department. Those agencies provided scientific expertise and advice on how to manufacture special materials, respectively.

At the time, the CDC wanted a way to return infected medical workers to the United States instead of treating them in the field, because of growing concern about international conflicts, said Dent Thompson, the company’s vice president of operations.

The transport systems were finished in late-2011, but the outbreaks had long since died down. The units were placed in storage.

“We would periodically make various federal agencies aware that it existed and said, ‘If you ever need it, we can use it,’” Thompson said.

A call finally came from the State Department’s chief of emergency medicine in late-July, amid growing concerns about the West African Ebola outbreak. Phoenix Air quickly assembled a volunteer flight and medical crew after government officials inspected the system and gave it a thumbs-up.

“Within 48 hours, we were on our way to get the first patient,” Thompson said, speaking of the flight to transport Brantly on Aug. 2. The plane took Brantly to Atlanta and turned around almost immediately to fetch Writebol.

Both trips, which cost about $200,000 each, including the decontamination process, were paid for by Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian humanitarian organization that the patients worked with in Liberia.

After those missions, Phoenix Air decided that the U.S. government should manage future transport efforts, because of the “real-world complexities of what it takes to make a mission like this work,” Thompson said. The challenges include dealing with U.S. customs officials, gaining permission to use foreign airspace and deciding which medical centers should treat the Ebola victims.

The State Department has since coordinated all flights, including those for foreigners returning to their countries. U.S. taxpayers pick up the tab for American patients, but the government requires reimbursement for the others.

“To me, this is no different from a soldier being shot in Afghanistan,” Thompson said. “The U.S. government is going to get that soldier and bring him home and put him in a medical facility.”

The federal government has been a longtime customer of Phoenix Air. In addition to flying executive charters and providing air-ambulance services, the business of about 225 employees also runs cargo for the military, provides flights for the U.S. Marshals Service and carried the White House’s presidential delegation to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

The company now keeps one plane on standby for transporting Ebola victims.

“We’re like a firetruck in a fire station,” Thompson said. “We’re ready to go.”
Josh Hicks covers the federal government and anchors the Federal Eye blog. He reported for newspapers in the Detroit and Seattle suburbs before joining the Post as a contributor to Glenn Kessler’s Fact Checker blog in 2011.

Governor Christie's Non Super Bowl in New Jersey

Well Super Bowl 48 is history with the lopsided surprise win, Seattle Seahawks as world champions. Where was Governor Christie when the Vince Lombardi trophy was awarded?  

This particular game was supposed to be a quasi coronation of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's leadership; he was ready to wear the Red White and Blue miter, to personify America the Beautiful and all but claim that he possibly invented Super Bowl Sunday, just for the American people. This could have been Christie's national party to prove he could lead America and run as the 2016 Republican presidential candidate. A Super Bowl in New Jersey was supposed to demonstrate these amazing character traits.

Unfortunately, for Governor Christie, he has lost his momentum regarding the national leadership he hoped to claim with a super bowl spectacle. 

No doubt, Christie must've had a series of publicity media interviews planned for both pre and post game hype.  

Instead, he's planning interviews with his lawyers to prepare for testimony before federal investigators, due to accusations of obstruction of justice, and political corruption or more.

Super Bowl Sunday turned out perfectly for the Seattle Seahawks. Not so much for Governor Christie. He didn't have such a good day. Indeed, the Super Bowl Christie envisioned, when the games were perfectly timed to coincide with his grand plans for a political debut, have, instead, focused on the winner and loser of the game, rather than on the governor's political momentum.

This Super Bowl 48 was a win for the Seattle Seahawks, a team representing a progressive US state where a $15 minimum wage will soon be state law (maybe it already is so).  

Maybe Governor Christie can visit Washington state to learn how football trophies are something like politics, because it takes a focused team effort to win. Governor Christie had an unfocused team when his staff caused a preventable traffic jam on the George Washington Bridge in September 2013, just to exert undue political leverage against the Mayor of Fort Lee.  Now, the Governor and his staff are very focused on staying out of jail.

It certainly turned out to be a non Super Bowl Sunday for Governor Chris Christie.  

For the Seattle Seahawks, it was a terrific Super Bowl 48 win. Congratulations.

Another Gunman in Another Mall in Another Shooting Incident in New Jersey

Lost in the rather boring news cycle of the 2013 November election results was yet another shooting incident, this time in Governor Christie's New Jersey.  

This particular gun violence incident was given rather routine news coverage. Indeed, the election of the New York City mayoral candidate Bill DiBlasio was given more headline coverage than the potential for another mass shooting incident in a busy New Jersey shopping mall. Although the perpetrator of the incident was later found dead with a self inflicted gun shot wound, his reign of terror was captured on emergency E911 calls from horrified victims.

As terrifyingly routine as gun violence incidents are becoming in America's culture, it'll only take one more in New Jersey to expose Governor Christie's avid support for unbridled Second Amendment rights. Although Governor Christie won re-election based upon his leadership after Hurricane Sandy's devastation, a mass killing in any sector of New Jersey could turn public opinion against him faster than a storm surge wiped out Atlantic City's Boardwalk.  

Gun supporters can squawk all they want about more rather than less guns. In fact, nothing can prepare innocent people against the sheer randomness of murderer with a gun. Yet, there's a way for all gun violence to be eliminated, although Governor Christie ignores this cause and effect. His  political instincts are astutely tuned into those who support Second Amendment rights in spite of how many innocent people are murdered as a result of gun violence. Nevertheless, Governor Christie is also a "pro-life Republican". (Where's that international reporter who asked President Obama how he could be the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize but support an act of war against Syria, even though his intention was to prevent genocide by the Assad regime?) How can Governor Christie be pro-life and oppose any life saving limits on Second Amendment Rights?  

Therefore, I'll be the blogger to pose this question to Governor Christie, before there's another gun violence incident in New Jersey.  

Dear Governor Chris Christie, congratulations on your re-election as governor of New Jersey. How do you intend to reconcile your support for pro-life issues and Second Amendment rights?  

Please answer this question before there's yet another preventable gun violence incident in New New Jersey.

Common Sense Politics- Yes or No Referenda

When voters are asked to choose on a particular ballot measure, they're offered only two options. The options are either "Yes" or "No".  One choice only and ambiguity is never allowed.

Yet, many partisan politicians would rather create a "none of the above" vote, rather than provide common sense votes on issues we elect them to decide.  

Recently, however, two high profile state governors finally faced down nonsensical political opposition.  Governor Cuomo of New York State spoke eloquently against gun violence while New Jersey Governor Chris Christie openly criticized leaders of his own Republican party leadership in Washington DC because they ignored his state's urgent need for emergency federal aid.

Cuomo said: "No one hunts with an assault rifle. No one needs 10 bullets to kill a deer, End the madness now!"  These words are in the face of zealous supporters of the Second Amendment, who support gun owners rights, without regard for any measures to protect the public health from assault weapons massacres.

A disaster relief bill to provide emergency funds to devastated New Jersey victims of Hurricane Sandy was left on the table when Speaker of the House John Boehner left Washington DC after the fiscal cliff deal was voted. Although Governor Christie called Boehner, four calls were not returned.  

Christie didn't put up with this rude arrogance.  Rather, during the Governor's annual state of the state address in Trenton, NJ, Christie said Boehner and his Republican caucus bore sole responsibility and 'blame" for continued suffering of Hurricane Sandy victims.

Americans respond positively to frank spoken politicians when they are speaking in support of the people.  Unfortunately, many politiicians are fearful of speaking truth to the power. They ingratiate themselves with inflluential lobbyiests or powerful political leaders. 

Many politicians oppose gun control regulations because industry lobbyists offer generous contributions to politicians who vote in support of unbridled Second Amendment rights.

Yet, it shouldn't take extraordinary situations like tragic gun massacres, or a category four hurricane hitting New Jersey to empower political leaders to call for common sense political solutions to urgent human needs involving public health and safety.

Woefully lacking are the "Yes" and "No" common sense politics in our nation's widening partisan divide. 

Although Americans elect political leaders who best represent local or regional opinions and points of view, the responsibilities of statesmanship requires those elected to exhibit common sense in the face of growing public cynicism of government gridlock. 

We need more referenda style politicians who understand how to promulgate common sense politics.