Feeling Like the Neglected Child

The following is my latest column in The Jewish Link of New Jersey, in which I examine how Governor Chris Christie’s presidential ambitions are impacting New Jersey:

FEELING LIKE THE NEGLECTED CHILD

By: N. Aaron Troodler, Esq.

Some may say that New Jersey residents have a bit of a complex. They often feel a sense of inferiority when compared to the flashy and famous neighboring state of New York which is right across the Hudson River. Despite all that the Garden State has to offer, many New Jerseyans have grown accustomed to playing second fiddle to their neighbor known as the Empire State.

Yet, there is a renewed sense of inferiority among New Jersey residents these days when they turn their eyes towards Trenton. The one person who should theoretically be their biggest cheerleader and offer them infinite consideration and endless support has sadly turned his attention elsewhere. Governor Chris Christie has seemingly moved on to bigger and better things and appears to have left New Jersey in his rear view mirror as he continues his national tour.

Perhaps if New Jersey was named “Iowa” or “New Hampshire,” Chris Christie might pay more attention to it. If New Jersey boasted the first presidential primary election or caucus in the nation, maybe Chris Christie would give it a second look. After spending all or part of nearly 140 days traveling outside of New Jersey last year, Governor Christie’s apparent desire to put as much distance as possible between himself and the Garden State is a stinging rebuke to the people who elected him to govern, not once, but twice.

Christie’s fascination with the national stage, and, in particular, with the key battleground states, is attributable to his not-so-secret desire to ascend to the presidency and take up residence in the White House. Instead of thinking of ways to make New Jersey better, Chris Christie is spending his days contemplating ways to make Chris Christie better.

New Jersey residents are not taking too kindly to their absentee governor who harbors national ambitions. A recent Quinnipiac University poll found that Christie’s approval rating is at the lowest point that it has been in nearly four years. One year after the Bridgegate controversy exploded, just 46 percent of New Jersey voters approve of the job Chris Christie is doing as governor, while 48 percent disapprove of his performance. The last time that Christie eclipsed the 50-percent mark was when he garnered a 55-percent approval rating one year ago.

In fact, the majority of New Jersey voters do not believe that Christie should run for president. Another recent Quinnipiac University poll found that 56-percent of Garden State voters say that he should not embark on a White House run, 57-percent say he would not make a good Commander-in-Chief, and 52-percent believe that a presidential campaign is distracting Christie from properly performing his duties as governor. In addition, in the event that Chris Christie formally enters the race, 66-percent of New Jersey voters are of the opinion that he should resign as governor.

In what amounts to a strong indication that he is seriously leaning towards a presidential run, we learned recently that Chris Christie has established a political action committee (PAC) that would allow him to start hiring staff members for a 2016 campaign. Christie, who named his PAC “Leadership Matters for America,” could utilize this new tool to fund his travel expenses and other miscellaneous activities.

Yes, “Leadership Matters for America.” However, my dear Governor, in case you have not yet realized it, leadership matters for New Jersey as well. While you seek to exhibit leadership on a national level, you seem to have forsaken the mantle of leadership that you were handed by the electorate in New Jersey.

While you jet around the country and lay the groundwork for what appears to be an inevitable presidential run, you inexplicably and inconsiderately turned your back on the people that you pledged to represent in New Jersey. It seems as if you would prefer to be in any other state in the union but the state that you were charged with managing. New Jersey has gone from being the “Garden State” to becoming the “Forgotten State.”

Instead of hobnobbing with Jerry Jones in the posh owner’s suite and on the sidelines at Dallas Cowboys games, perhaps you should focus on the job that you have to do at home.

Aside from engaging in damage control measures as a result of self-inflicted controversies and scandals, there is real work to be done here and important issues that need to be addressed.

With improvements needed to the state’s transportation infrastructure, including many of its roads and bridges, money needs to be restored to the Transportation Trust Fund. With so many New Jersey residents still suffering in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, more help is needed for those whose lives were torn apart by the storm. With New Jerseyans struggling under a crushing property tax burden, relief is desperately needed. With the state pension fund in dire straits, stabilization of the fund is imperative.

New Jersey residents did not elect Chris Christie to be their governor for the 62-percent of the time that he was actually in his home state last year; they elected him to be their governor for 100-percent of the time. With a governor that is going more than he is coming, New Jerseyans feel like a neglected child whose parent has abandoned them.

Leadership requires one to lead, not leave. It is okay for Governor Christie to have political ambitions; however, his professional dreams cannot come at New Jerseyans’ personal expense. An absentee governor is not the answer to solving New Jersey’s problems. Someone ought to tell that to Chris Christie.

N. Aaron Troodler is an attorney and principal of Paul Revere Public Relations, a public relations and political consulting firm. Visit him on the Web at TroodlersTake.blogspot.com, www.PaulReverePR.com, or www.JewishWorldPR.com. You can also follow him on Twitter: @troodler