It’s a Jersey Thing: Why Chris Christie – or Any Pol From the Garden State – Can’t Go National

I’ve got a new column up at Time.com which discusses what being
from New Jersey means for Chris Christie, the embattled governor of
the greatest state in the country. Snippets:

Shows such as The
Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire only
make sense in a place like New Jersey, where everyone has a chip on
their shoulder, is hustling to make a buck, and is desperate for
prestige (as South Park memorably summarized it in 2010, “It’s a
Jersey thing”). That’s the reason, too, that Abscam, the FBI sting
operation that informs the plot of the acclaimed new
movie American Hustle, was centered around Atlantic
City and took down mostly New Jersey politicians, too. Even more
than the typical elected official, Garden State pols want money,
power, and respect.

But as Tony Soprano
(played so memorably by the late Jersey native James Gandolfini), could
tell you, the same forces that spur ambition and success also carry
within them their own demise. It quickly becomes difficult to know
when serious lines are being crossed or the wrong messages are
being sent to the people around you….

It’s telling that in his rise to national prominence, Gov.
Christie captured headlines less for what he did than how he did
it. Where other Republican governors have implemented major
structural changes to collective bargaining (Wisconsin’s Scott
Walker) or educational policy (Louisiana’s Bobby Jindal), Christie
has essentially governed as a big-government
conservative, spending more money each year he’s been in office
and doling out conventional corporate welfare to favored
constituents. The State of the State address he
delivered yesterday didn’t change any of that.

What’s made him famous — or
infamous, depending on your politics — was his
willingness to shout down teachers, reporters, and even voters
that he deemed idiots or worse. In short, it’s his Jersey attitude,
not his policies, that have put him on top
of potential Republican presidential candidates….

Even if he’s ultimately fully exonerated in these and any other
scandals, a question about his temperament will remain. Ironically,
the same 100 percent Jersey temperament that got him noticed may
disqualify him for life outside of Trenton. New
Jersey exports
tons of fruits, vegetables, pharmaceuticals, petroleum
products, and above all, smart people. What it hasn’t done in a
very long time — and probably for very good reason — is export a
president.