Since becoming Governor of the Garden State, Chris Christie has garnered the praise of conservatives for his "blunt" talk that included calling New Jersey "a failed state." His pledges to bring about ""smaller government that lives within its means" in Trenton-- and to do so without tax increases, declaring "I was not sent here to approve tax increases, I was sent here to veto them" led to laudatory reviews beginning back in April by Bill McGurn in the Wall Street Journal who went so far that Christie was reviving "Reagan Republicanism -- Jersey style." And John Fund also in the Wall Street Journal noted back in May that conservatives "were impressed by a rare chief executive willing to tackle his state intractable problems in an unapologetic manner." Fund was especially pleased that Christie was taking on the "malign influence of the New Jersey Education Association" which Christie has described as "an absolutely out-of-control union that is used to getting everything it wants." And bonus points were awarded for comparing New Jersey to debt-ridden Greece. Others who have written celebratory pieces include George Will and Marc Thiessen.

Still it is McGurn's original piece from back in April in the Journal that perhaps best captures the "blunt talk" from Christie that has conservatives aglow over the New Jersey Governor. Here are a few examples that McGurn had culled from Governor Christie's budget address, public meetings and radio appearances:

The children will be the ones to suffer from your education cuts. "The real question is, who's for the kids, and who's for their raises? This isn't about the kids. Let's dispense with that portion of the argument. Don't let them tell you that ever again while they are reaching into your pockets."

Your policies favor the rich. "We have the worst unemployment in the region and the highest taxes in America, and that's no coincidence."

Why not renew the 'millionaire's tax'? "The top 1% of taxpayers in New Jersey pay 40% of the income tax. In addition, we've got a situation where that tax applies to small businesses. I'm simply not going to put my foot on the back of the neck of small business while I want them to try to grow jobs by giving more revenue to New Jersey."

Budget cuts are unfair. "The special interests have already begun to scream their favorite word—which, coincidentally, is my 9-year-old son's favorite word when we are making him do something he knows is right but does not want to do—'unfair.' . . . One state retiree, 49 years old, paid, over the course of his entire career, a total of $124,000 towards his retirement pension and health benefits. What will we pay him? $3.3 million in pension payments over his life, and nearly $500,000 for health care benefits—a total of $3.8 million on a $120,000 investment. Is that fair?"

State budget cuts only shift the pain to our towns. "[L]et's remember this, in 2009 the private sector in New Jersey lost 121,000 jobs. In 2009, municipalities and school boards added 11,300 jobs. Now that's just outrageous. And they're going to have to start to lay some people off, not continue to hire at the pace they hired in 2009 in the middle of a recession."

Isn't your talk of 'stopping the tax madness' just another 'Read My Lips' promise? "[Mine is] much better than 'Read my lips.' I'm sorry, it's just much better. Much stronger. . . . It's gonna be how my governorship will rise or fall. I'm not signing a tax increase."

There's more...

Citing personal reasons, billionaire real estate magnate and publisher Morton Zuckerman, owner of the tabloid New York Daily News, has decided against running for the US Senate seat currently held by Senator Kristen Gillibrand.

From the New York Daily News:

Mr. Zuckerman, chairman and publisher of the Daily News, said personal and professional reasons were behind his decision not to challenge Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

"I was encouraged by many major political figures in New York to look closely at running for Senate," Mr. Zuckerman said.

"However, at this time, it is very difficult to see how I can devote the necessary time to either a campaign, or to working in Washington, if I were to win."

Mr. Zuckerman pointed out that he has a young family, which is the most important focus in his life.

In addition, he has assumed the position of CEO of Boston Properties Inc., the real estate company he co-founded with Ed Linde, who recently passed away.

"Ed and I were partners for more than 45 years, and with him no longer a part of our company, I owe it to all the loyal people who have worked with me for so many years to contribute to our continuing success," he said.

Mr. Zuckerman added that he had been extremely flattered that a possible run for Senate had brought widespread, bipartisan support from many corners of the state.

"I believe that there is a great deal that needs to be achieved in Washington, not only on behalf of the people of New York, but in trying to break some of the paralyzing deadlock that has gripped the political decision-making process," he said.

"However, it demands unhindered attention, which I am unable to give at this time."

These are unsettled times in New York State politics but at the very least the path to re-election for Senator Gillibrand, never really in doubt, now seems clearer.

In other news, embattled Governor David Paterson who last week was forced out of his bid for reelection as allegations surfaced that his office had intervened in an assault case against out of his top aides ruled out resigning before the end of his term. The unfolding scandal today claimed the head of the New York State Police,  Superintendent Harry Corbitt, who has chosen to take early retirement. Corbitt had acknowledged last month that a State Police official had contact with a woman who had accused a top Paterson aide of assaulting her on Halloween in the Bronx.

Lastly, House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel who represents the New York Fifteen Congressional District that encompasses Harlem in Manhattan is reportedly set to relinquish his gavel and take a "leave of absence" from his chairmanship according to MSNBC. If Congressman Rangel does step aside the chairmanship of the powerful committee will temporarily pass to Rep. Sander Levin of Michigan according to leadership sources, or to Rep. Pete Stark of California, the committee's second-ranking Democrat.

New York Governor David Paterson will drop his bid for election to a full term. Governor Paterson had come under increasing pressure after the New York Times revealed that the Governor had interfered with a domestic-violence case involving David Johnson, one of his of top aides.

The story in the New York Times:

Gov. David A. Paterson is set to announce that he will not seek election in the wake of reports that he and the State Police intervened in a domestic-assault case against a senior aide, according to a person told about the plans.

He is expected to make the announcement this afternoon.

It would follow a tumultuous Thursday in which, following revelations about the governor’s involvement in the abuse case, many of his political allies suggested he stand down form his bid to be elected. In a brief press availability late in the day, the governor said he would stay in the race, but that he would also seek counsel from other Democrats about how to proceed with his political future.

The state awoke on Friday to calls for the governor’s resignation from newspaper editorial writers, which only added to the increasing belief that it would be impossible for him to run the state and a campaign while the abuse case, and its handling by both he and the state police, is under investigation. He has asked the state’s attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo, an assumed political rival for the governorship, to investigate the case.

The end of Mr. Paterson’s campaign came less than a week after he formally began it, with a defiant speech at Hofstra University in Hempstead in which he cast himself as an underdog who would fight for ordinary New Yorkers against Albany special interests.

The New York Daily News in its editorial today called for Paterson to step down immediately.

The Wall Street Journal will report that former Long Island GOP Congressman Rick Lazio will announce on Tuesday that he will seek the GOP nomination for Governor in New York.

Mr. Lazio, who served four terms in Congress, has been out of electoral politics for almost a decade working on Wall Street for Morgan Stanley.

The other GOP name being bantered about is that of former New York City Mayor, Rudy Giuliani.

Meanwhile embattled Governor David Paterson is defiantly vowing to run for election next year despite the White House's urging that he withdraw from the race in the interest of the party. Should be an interesting year in New York state electoral politics.

There's more...

This is bound to cause a stir. Voicing concern, if not dissatisfaction over his tenure, President Obama has apparently conveyed to David Paterson, the unpopular and embattled Governor of New York, a request that he should step aside in the interest of the party retaining the Governorship. The story in the New York Times:

President Obama has sent a request to Gov. David A. Paterson that he withdraw from the New York governor's race, fearing that Mr. Paterson cannot recover from his dismal political standing, according to two senior administration officials and a New York Democratic operative with direct knowledge of the situation.

The decision to ask Mr. Paterson to step aside was proposed by political advisers to Mr. Obama, but approved by the president himself, one of the administration officials said.

"Is there concern about the situation in New York? Absolutely," the second administration official said Saturday evening. "Has that concern been conveyed to the governor? Yes."

The administration officials and the Democratic operative spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions with the governor were intended to be confidential.

The president's request was conveyed to the Mr. Paterson by Representative Gregory W. Meeks, a Queens Democrat, who has developed a strong relationship with the Obama administration, they said.

The move against a sitting Democratic governor represents an extraordinary intervention into a state political race by the president, and is a delicate one, given that Mr. Paterson is one of only two African-American governors in the nation.

But Mr. Obama's political team and other party leaders have grown increasingly worried that the governor's unpopularity could drag down Democratic members of Congress in New York, as well as the Democratic-controlled Legislature, in next fall's election.

Where did it all go wrong for David Paterson?

There's more...