Christie’s Bid to Revive ‘Compassionate Conservatism’

By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog

Santorum with BushAt a time when a large segment of the GOP base is gravitating towards an increasingly libertarian worldview, Save Jerseyans, Governor Chris Christie isn’t trying to compete for the same Republican primary market. He’s making a hard play to carry the standard for Bush-era “compassionate conservatives,” a term popularly used to describe the 43rd President’s social conservatism and support for tax cuts moderated by hawkish foreign policy stances and an allowance for big government intervention in a social context.

Yes, it makes many of my fellow conservatives cringe (often with good reason), and I’ve never thought the term needed a modifier, but it’s an approach that’s worked at the ballot box before and might just strike a chord as the Iraq crisis engenders Dubya nostalgia in some sectors sooo, consequently, the New Jersey Governor continues to spend lots of time doubling-down on things like after-school dinner programs, the DREAM Actcriminal justice reform and, recently, a different approach to the Garden State’s heroin epidemic. The first big test: can Christie out-Bush a Bush?

On Tuesday, the Guv announced a statewide expansion of the Narcan Pilot program, granting a waiver which will allow 28,000 certified EMTs to administer the medication designed to treat drug overdose patients:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJL-JHvJL04

Matt Rooney
About Matt Rooney 8403 Articles
MATT ROONEY is SaveJersey.com's founder and editor-in-chief, a practicing New Jersey attorney, and the host of 'The Matt Rooney Show' on 1210 WPHT every Sunday evening from 7-10PM EST.

9 Comments

  1. Yep…let us see what he does with these new gun laws on his desk or any other BS gun law this state has. He is desperate.

  2. Compassionate conservatism can work if implemented correctly (see Jack Kemp), but big government giveaways that foster long-term dependency aren’t compassionate…they are cruel. And besides, CC has too gruff an image and personality to lead such an effort.

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