Christie took office recently, and if his words can be matched by deeds, which will be challenging in a state with the legislature controlled by Democrats, he may end up being much more effective than he appeared on during the campaign.
Christie has ruled out tax increases to balance New Jersey's large budget deficit, which is impressive since tax increases have been the solution du jour for state Democrats to tackle deficits.
But just as impressive is Christie's attitude toward education reform. New Jersey has one of the nation's highest per capita spending per student in public schools, which has been one of the factors leading to sky high taxes, and has been resistant to promoting educational choice. Christie has appointed Bret Shundler, the former Jersey City mayor and gubernatorial candidate with a strong track record of promoting educational reform, as his state education commissioner.
But best of all is Christie's response to the question as to whether his appointment of Shundler sends a message to the powerful teacher's union, the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA). Christie replied: "I don't think the appointment of Bret Shundler sends any signal to the NJEA. The election of Chris Christie sends a message to the NJEA."
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