A Brief Biography of Chris Christie (Republican Party candidate)

Christopher James Christie was born on September 6, 1962 in Newark, New Jersey. Christie lived in New Jersey his whole life, except when he went to study political science at the University of Delaware. When he graduated, Christie returned to New Jersey to study law at Seton Hall University where he received his J.D.. In 1986, Christie married his wife, Mary Pat Foster, whom he met at the University of Delaware. The following year, Christie was admitted to the New Jersey bar.

Christie started his political career as a relatively brash freeholder and moderate Republican. He almost immediately began laying plans for a run for State Assembly which would mean going against well-established party regulars. However, he had not garnered enough support and suffered a crushing defeat in the 1995 Assembly race. Chris Christie would not run for elective political office until 2009 and became a lobbyist for energy companies.

His lobbyist career set him up to become a top fundraiser in George W. Bush’s presidential campaign in 2000. In 2001, he was nominated to serve as United States Attorney for New Jersey which  sparked controversy over his little experience. Many Democrats and skeptical Republicans thought he was given the job since he funded Bush’s presidential campaign. However, in office Christie changed minds by spearheading aggressive investigations against corrupt public officials. After gaining the reputation of being a capable and fair-minded prosecutor, Christie began to consider electoral politics again.

Chris Christie managed to beat out his more conservative Republican rivals and won the primary election. As a Republican at the head of a liberal state, Christie was praised for his ability to move legislation and win over constituents. As the presidential election of 2012 approached, Christie’s name was thrown around for the Republican candidate. When Mitt Romney was selected as the Republican candidate, Christie was considered for his running mate. However, Paul Ryan was chosen and the Republicans ended up losing that election.

As tragedy befell New Jersey in the form of Hurricane Sandy and the Seaside Park boardwalk fire, Christie pledged his support to helping the community. In November, Christie had the backing of most of the state and easily won re-election for governor. After this impressive victory, Christie was considered for a presidential candidate in 2016. At the start of 2014, Governor Christie found himself caught in a scandal involving a traffic jam on the George Washington Bridge entering New York City. Christie issued a public statement saying that he had nothing to do with the incident. Some still believed he was involved and thought it would damper his bid for presidency in 2016 if he ran. In June 2015, Christie announced his bid for presidency. He faces a lot of opposition in his quest for nomination from Jeb Bush, Rand Paul, and Marco Rubio.

Chris Christie believes that assault weapons should not be banned and there should be some gun control. He also believes that there should be a focus on mental health in connection with gun violence. Christie opposes citizenship for illegal immigrants but advocates for giving undocumented students in-state tuition. He wants to repeal Obamacare and replace it but accepted the Medicaid expansion for his state. Christie disagrees with the legalization of gay marriage but respects it as the law of the land. He believes abortions should be banned after 20 weeks with exceptions of rape, incest, and risk to mother. On the issue of Social Security he believes that the costs should be increased for wealthier Americans and the retirement age be raised to 69 by the year 2064.

Works Cited

Biography.com Editors. "Chris Christie Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 20 Nov. 2015. <http://www.biography.com/people/chris-christie-20648789>.
Summers, Elizabeth, and Lisa Desjardins. "What Does Chris Christie Believe?" PBS Newshour. PBS, 30 June 2015. Web. 19 Nov. 2015. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/chris-christie-believe-candidate-stands-10-issues/>.