Christie a hot commodity among Republican candidates

TRENTON - As Gov. Christie approaches rock-star status within certain circles of the Republican Party, candidates nationwide are turning to him for inspiration and advice for November's midterm elections.

The Republican Governors Association is so taken with its new poster boy that it is producing a 20-minute movie, to be released online Sept. 8, about Christie's upset victory over a millionaire Democratic incumbent, Jon S. Corzine, in a heavily blue state, and his first eight months in office.

"I think Gov. Christie is clearly being seen as a model for Republicans throughout the country," said Mike Schrimpf, a spokesman for the governors association. "He's providing the type of leadership that Americans are eager for. They see what's going on in Washington - out-of-control spending, higher taxes - and they're happy to see that somebody . . . is doing the exact opposite."

At stake in the midterms are 37 governorships, 36 seats in the U.S. Senate, and all the seats in the House of Representatives.

As the GOP gears up to capitalize on the public's dissatisfaction with President Obama and the dismal economy, some within the party are looking to Christie as an example of both how to win at the polls and how to govern.

During his campaign, Christie took down Corzine by promising to cut government spending and create jobs.

Since Christie's inauguration in January, he has wrangled a Democratic-controlled Legislature mostly into submission and garnered heaps of adoring praise from conservative commentators across the country: A New York Post writer recently declared Christie the object of "breathless, paste-his-picture-in-your-locker" crushes among fiscal conservatives; this month, Christie is the subject of a glowing cover article in the National Review.

Stuart Rothenberg, editor and publisher of the nonpartisan political newsletter the Rothenberg Political Report, said Christie has received a lot of attention because he has been aggressive in pursuing an agenda focused on the budget and taxes.

"It gets everybody's attention because most politicians don't do what they say they will, and Gov. Christie has been different," Rothenberg said. "He hasn't minded taking on the establishment in the state, whether it's the Democratic Legislature or organized labor or whatever."

Still, Rothenberg cautioned against blowing Christie's national reputation out of proportion.