Zachary Antoyan
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Zachary Antoyan is a political science senior and Mustang News liberal columnist. These views do not necessarily reflect the opinion or editorial coverage of Mustang News.
Dear New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie,
I’ve been hearing a lot about you from the other side of the country for a few years now. I can say that most of who I consider to be big names on the Republican front frustrate me to some extent.
Your buddy John Boehner is all kinds of unorganized, Sarah Palin is both crazy and clueless, John McCain is so much of a war hawk that I’m afraid he is going to join the Bear Revolution and Michelle Bachman, I mean, have you seen her Time Magazine cover photo? It’s clear to me that your colleagues are radical, as they are so focused on hitting anger points and using aggressive political tactics to achieve their goals that they neglect their own responsibilities as government officials.
What I mean by this is that they would rather entrench themselves in their ideologies and shut themselves off to differing points of view than pick their battles and actively seek new methods to see their goals realized. When people refer to Washington as a “political arena,” I fear that your counterparts take this literally and approach their daily lives with a kill-or-be-killed attitude. To an extent, this is understandable. But when you start to act like John Cena versus Stone Cold Steve Austin, I think something may have gone awry. You understand this — it is clear that you understand this — and that is why I admire your approach to governance.
You have succeeded in separating yourself from the stagnation and impotence that has been so pervasive as of late. Your recent decision to no longer pursue an appeal to a New Jersey law that legalizes same-sex marriage is an example of your ability to choose your path wisely. I can accept that you still oppose the measure, that is your prerogative, but you know your resources and attention can be focused elsewhere.
Your stance is to not retroactively govern like those that share your ideological views. Not only do you pick your battles, but you understand that the people on the other side of the aisle, so to speak, are not your enemy. Skeletor from He-Man was always our enemy, but Democrats and independents are not, and your relatively high approval rating from the traditionally liberal state of New Jersey is evidence of this.
Keep fighting the good fight. I’m rooting for you.
This is Zachary Antoyan, hoping that Christie reads this at some point. Have a good week.