The Newark Star-Ledger’s editorial page editor on Sunday explained why he had some regrets about endorsing New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) in 2013, but stopped short of saying he would never support the scandal-laden politician again.
“An endorsement is not a love embrace. It is a choice between two flawed human beings. And the winner is often the less bad option,” editor Tom Moran wrote in a column. “But yes, we blew this one.”
Moran said that the paper new about many of Christie’s flaws, but that they did not understand the extent of his corruption.
“Yes, we knew Christie was a bully. But we didn’t know his crew was crazy enough to put people’s lives at risk in Fort Lee as a means to pressure the mayor,” he wrote. “We didn’t know he would use Hurricane Sandy aid as a political slush fund.”
And Moran acknowledged that Christie did push a few helpful policy initiatives while governor, and that his opponent in 2013, state senator Barbara Buono, was not prepared for the governorship.
Moran concluded his column by warning readers that Christie’s downfall as a result of the bridge scandal could lead to a more conservative candidate like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) winning the GOP nomination in the 2016 presidential race.
“At the risk of repeating a mistake, I’d pick Christie in that primary, even now,” he wrote. “If one of the tea party favorites gets the Republican nomination, then the country is at risk.”
