New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has won the endorsement of the New Hampshire Union Leader, giving the 2016 GOP presidential candidate a big boost in a state shaping up to be crucial to his White House aspirations.
Joseph McQuaid, the publisher of the influential newspaper in the first-in-the-nation primary state, wrote in a piece over the weekend that as a U.S. attorney and “big-state governor,” Mr. Christie “is the one candidate who has the range and type of experience the nation desperately needs.”
“We don’t need another fast-talking, well-meaning freshman U.S. senator trying to run the government,” Mr. McQuaid wrote. “We are still seeing the disastrous effects of the last such choice.”
He wrote that Mr. Christie is a “solid, pro-life conservative” who has managed to govern in “liberal New Jersey” while facing down public sector unions.
“Gov. Christie can work across the aisle, but he won’t get rolled by the bureaucrats. We don’t need as president some well-meaning person from the private sector who has no public experience,” he wrote.
“Gov. Christie is right for these dangerous times,” he continued. “He has prosecuted terrorists and dealt admirably with major disasters. But the one reason he may be best-suited to lead during these times is because he tells it like it is and isn’t shy about it.”
“Other candidates have gained public and media attention by speaking bluntly. But it’s important when you are telling it like it is to actually know what you are talking about,” he continued.
In 2012, the paper endorsed former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the 2012 GOP primary, and in 2008 it endorsed eventual GOP nominee John McCain.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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