Christie hits campaign trail for Corbett
New Jersey Gov. Christie did what he came to do: Stir up the crowd to vote for Pennsylvania Gov. Corbett.
New Jersey Gov. Christie did what he came to do: Stir up the crowd to vote for Pennsylvania Gov. Corbett.
And make them laugh.
Maybe, Christie said at a rally in Ivyland, Bucks County, it might be better for New Jersey if the opponent won.
"He's tough competition," Christie said of Corbett. "He stole more jobs from New Jersey. If I were going to act selfishly, I'd say, 'What do I need this for for four more years?' "
The crowd of about 680 people at Spring Mill Manor laughed, but that was only the beginning.
"One more half-baked Obama rally and Corbett will win by double digits," Christie said as Corbett stood by his side, grinning. The two men were in nearly matching fleeces - Christie's blue and Corbett's green.
Christie had just finished thanking God for President Obama's trip to Philadelphia on Sunday night to appear with Corbett's Democratic challenger, Tom Wolf - just in case "anyone had forgotten what an abject failure he is," Christie said of the president.
In his speech, Christie leaned on the Pennsylvania roots of his wife, Mary Pat. She was born in Bryn Mawr Hospital and grew up in Paoli, where much of her family still lives. That's why, Christie said, the race is personal for him.
"When your friend is being challenged, you stand up and take the shots with him," Christie said. "But the good news is that our guns are loaded, too. You are our ammunition."
And that was the underlying mission of the whole rally, stressed by each speaker. Make phone calls and get out the vote.
Though the rally was clearly for Corbett, in the post-rally selfie-shooting, autograph-seeking blitz, Christie drew a bigger crowd from the elephant-bejeweled and neck-tied audience. Christie patiently posed for pictures, lingering in the ballroom after Corbett left.
The long wait for the two governors had lulled the crowd into lethargy, but Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley and Corbett's wife, Susan, woke them up, leaving it to the governors to finish the job.
Christie said he had been in 14 states in four days and, "Democrats aren't excited about their own candidates and they shouldn't be."
If Christie raised guffaws, Corbett evoked chuckles, describing senior citizens sitting in McDonald's at 10 a.m. "solving the problems of the world. They don't want to pay any more taxes," he said.
Corbett reminded the crowd that he balanced the budget and didn't raise taxes. If Wolf wins, he joked, the initials of Wolf's alma mater, MIT, will mean More Income Taxes.
Corbett hoped Christie would help rally Republicans and independents to go to the polls on Tuesday.
"It's about getting out the vote, getting people ready to go to work, knocking on doors, making phone calls," said Billy Pitman, press secretary for the Corbett campaign. Pitman said the campaign had been heartened by recent polls showing a narrowing of the gap between Corbett and Wolf.
"Regardless of the poll, they've been trending toward a closer race," he said.
The crowd was generally upbeat, feeling that the momentum was shifting in Corbett's direction. For Bucks County GOP Chairman Patricia "Pat" Poprik, the shift occurred about three weeks ago when people began to ask for more Corbett lawn signs. "I'm so pumped," she said.
Last-ditch political events such as the gathering Sunday in Ivyland play an important role in closing out the campaign.
"In his own recipe for a major comeback, an essential ingredient is a high turnout from his Republican base," said Christopher Borick, director of Muhlenberg College's Institute of Public Opinion.
"The governor has to flip some votes right now," Borick said, and that can sometimes happen in the Philadelphia suburbs, with its independent voters and moderate voters in both parties who may be persuaded to move in Corbett's direction.
With the governor behind in the polls, his campaign staff has to make sure voters don't give up.
"You might get some sentiment among voters" that the election is already lost so "they don't need me," Borick said.
Meanwhile, regardless of what happens to Corbett, his New Jersey counterpart can only benefit, Borick said.
Because Corbett is behind, there is no expectation that Christie could make enough of a difference to turn it around, Borick said. So Christie can earn points from the party for campaigning even in a tough situation, particularly when the tough situation is a quick hop across the Delaware River from Trenton. "You look like a good team player," Borick said.
Either way, he said, Christie, chairman of the Republican Governors Association, "is using these opportunities to introduce himself to potential primary audiences across the country, especially in places like the Philadelphia suburbs," where his centrist leanings could help him as a presidential candidate, Borick said.
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