He's taken on the state employee unions, the legislature, the teachers - Chris Christie must not think he's doing something right unless he is getting the establishment Democrats mad at him.
Now, it's the state's Supreme Court, as told in this Wall Street Journal blurb:
Mr. Christie recently broke precedent by declining to renominate New Jersey Supreme Court Justice John Wallace to permanent tenure on the bench, opting to let his initial seven-year term expire. To replace Mr. Wallace, Gov. Christie nominated the state's former Deputy Attorney General, Anne Patterson.Mr. Christie's move was unusual but perhaps shouldn't have been unexpected. No governor in six decades has failed to renominate a Justice in good standing, but the power to do so is explicitly granted in the state constitution and Mr. Christie sold himself as the candidate of change. But that hasn't stopped the avatars of the status quo from going ape, including the New Jersey State Bar Association, which went out of its way to bestow an award recently on Justice Wallace. Outraged Democrats in the state senate, meanwhile, are calling the governor's move a "grave act" and refusing to hold a confirmation hearing for Ms. Patterson.
Mr. Christie cited no particular complaint against Justice Wallace, who is just two years away from the mandatory retirement age of 70 (though justices typically stick around longer to complete unfinished business). Instead, the governor used his announcement to remind voters of his campaign promise to reshape a high court that he said had become too liberal and too activist and had "inappropriately encroached on both the executive and legislative function." To cite one example, the court long ago gave itself final say on annual school funding, costing taxpayers more than $37 billion between 1998 and 2008 while failing to improve the state's schools.
Usually by this time, "reformist" governors begin to lose momentum because they step on so many toes. In Christie's case. just last month, voters rejected an astonishing 60% of local school budgets, acting on a request from the governor. His popularity in the heavily Democratic state may be falling, but the people are responding to his fresh approach to governance.
Talk of Christie running for president may be premature, but there is little doubt that the GOP has found a leader.
Hat Tip: Ed Lasky
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