Chris Christie electability: Would his girth be a campaign issue?
If Chris Christie does run for president, would his weight become a campaign issue?
Don鈥檛 blame us for bringing this up 鈥� if anything, we鈥檙e behind the bend on this one. Political columnists and late-night comedians have been poking at the subject for days. David Letterman鈥檚 Top 10 list on Tuesday was 鈥淲ays the Country Would Be Different if Chris Christie Were President,鈥� and it was basically a list of 10 hefty jokes.
We鈥檒l only quote one of the milder ones, No. 9: 鈥淕oodbye, White House vegetable garden.鈥�
In the past, Governor Christie himself has handled this subject with equanimity, saying only that the political implications of his imposing physical presence vary according to voter and day. But appearance matters in politics, and especially in presidential politics, which depends so much on television ads and other images. Think about it: When was the last time a bald person won the White House? . And the bald president in question was Dwight Eisenhower, who鈥檇 helped win World War II.
(Yes, Gerald Ford was folliclely challenged, but he never won an election.)
Thus we believe that if Christie decides to run, which is a very, um, big if, his weight will be the, the, (let鈥檚 think here) large gray mammal with a trunk in the room. Republicans are kidding themselves if they don鈥檛 think Democrats will see the subject as a target that even they can hit.
Columnist Michael Kinsley, newly employed by Bloomberg View, made the point in a recent piece that Christie鈥檚 size will be employed as a symbol by opponents. [Editor's note: The original version misstated Mr. Kinsley's affiliation.]
鈥淎nd it鈥檚 not just symbolism. We don鈥檛 yet know much about Chris Christie. He certainly makes all the right noises about fiscal discipline and seems to have done well so far as governor of New Jersey. Perhaps Christie is the only to help us get our national appetites under control. But it would help if he got his own under control first,鈥� .
In the Washington Post, long-time columnist that Christie鈥檚 weight would become a public issue if he ran because elected officials perform best when in optimal health, and that Christie is not.
鈥淥besity is a national epidemic whose costs are measured not just in dollars and cents but also in lives. Christie鈥檚 weight is as legitimate an issue as the smoking habit that President Obama says he has finally kicked,鈥� writes Mr. Robinson.
Of course, the cake knife cuts both ways here: It is possible many ordinary voters will identify with Christie鈥檚 struggle with the fork. He speaks candidly about this, in a manner that even the non-plus-sized might find moving and authentic.
鈥淚 know it would be better for my kids if I got it more under control, and so I do feel a sense of guilt at times about that,鈥� Christie said in a CNN interview earlier this year.
This is a moot point if Christie doesn鈥檛 run, of course. out Friday exploring the many obstacles remaining in his way, from a collapsed primary timeline to the need to raise lots of money fast.
D.C.鈥檚 conventional wisdom remains that Christie has really meant it in the past when he said he doesn鈥檛 think he鈥檚 ready to run, and so he won鈥檛. But Republican establishment figures continue to plead with the New Jersey governor to get into the race, and given the unpredictability of the campaign season so far, it wouldn鈥檛 be surprising if the nation gets its first presidential candidate of size since William Howard Taft. He was also a Republican, and he, in 1908, won.
