in our state to go chris christie.'s sour grapes, so stop wasting your time complaining about praying for a storm. find a candidate first, then get a message. >> this raises a really interesting point though, which is that the whole country assumes chris christie is going to run and he's very popular right now. and then when you actually run, people start throwing at you. they did with mitt romney, about his taxes, about the education rank of massachusetts. there were all kinds of things. things like having an unemployment rate 2% higher, that could change. or you could look at these statistics and they could change how you think about how he will do in a republican primary. >> the big thing is that chris christie has this profile where he's saying i'm a problem solver, a bipartisan guy. i get things done, but the thing is that there are two big democratic party bosses in the state. that's the reason why he gets things done because those guys with knuckle under the democrats and legislature, that's not how congress wor

approval at 73%. >> including 62% of democrats. >> chris christie is everywhere. >> chris christie. >> i'm here now with governor chris christie. >> chris christie is a headline waiting to happen. >> that means he has crossover appeal. >> would you support a federal ban? >> these are complicated issues. >> and the push to do something about guns appears to be picking up steam. >> vice president joe biden's declaration. >> the president is going to act. >> that the white house can take executive action. >> executive action that can be taken. >> to address gun violence. >> out of the way, obama is coming. >> is there room for common ground. >> the vice president's plan is designed to be big. comprehensive. >> too comprehensive for passage. >> that could disappoint a lot of folks. >> well you know what they say, if at first you don't succeed. >> today, republican governor chris christie told matt that the republican party is in trouble. >> but are you happy with the course of the republican party right now? do you think it is head understand the right direction? >> we have lost two nat

and this is really impressive news for chris christie. to look at where he's come. especially what his state has faced on the heels of hurricane sandy. and if we can go ahead and look at this fairly dickinson poll. the governor christie approval, dem crams, 62%. what you see numbers like that what does that say to you, michael? >> it makes me smile. that means he's resonating with the braoad specter of voters in the state. and that's what a good political leader does and christie is very effective that way. i think he's very smart to put off are you going to be the savior of the republican party nonsense. christie represents a new generation of leaders who are going to begin to emerge to step on the national stage through the work they're doing. governor jindal, suzanne martinez are just small examples of this emerging generation. and what's important here is for the party to listen to these guys. to follow their lead and understand and appreciate that a northeast republican is not the same as a southwest republican or southern republican. these guys bring skills and

today, chris christie continued his campaign against house republicans. >> we look forward to what we hope will be quick congressional action on a full, clean, sandy-aid bill now. now, next week, one thing i hope that everybody in america now clearly understands, new jersey, both republicans and democrats will never stand silent when our citizens are being shortchanged. >> and let's not forget what governor chris christie said last week. >> there is only one group to blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims. the house majority, and their speaker, john boehner. >> and today, "the daily beast" published the interview, she is mad as hell, about the myriad ways the republican brand has been tarnished, the sorry state, the ongoing alienation of latino voters, the epic failure of the fiscal cliff negotiations. and most recently, the house's arguing over the disaster relief aid. i'm angry, fumes mosbacher, i'm angry about the mistakes, i'm not writing any checks and i'm not asking anyone else to write any checks until i hear something that makes sense to me. since the elec

chris christie comes to this show. he's got a 32% approval rating after he's sworn in as governor because he's going after the teachers unions, to try to make them more accountable to teaching children, to make it about chirp instead of jobs. we ask him off the air, what are you going to do? he goes, i don't care. i'm going to keep doing what's right. and if i'm one-term governor, i don't care. and we know chris. he meant it. he really didn't care. he took them on. he won. he won so much that they now are coming to him, and they're reforming schools in newark together. he did the right thing on the budget. he became good friends with the democrats that run the senate. >> yeah. >> he was worried -- >> he did the right thing on sandy. >> he's worried that pensions won't pay off. isn't he worried about medicare not paying off? social security not paying off? >> he's also worried, mika, about his residence. so when president obama comes to help, he goes there and welcomes him. i mean, this guy does the right thing, and he'

why john boehner refuses to take chris christie's phone calls. that is next.nd in the rewrite tonight, what the senate did today. that is right, today, the united states senate. i know you have been told that the senate is closed for business. that is not true. harry reid got some good work done in the senate today and he got 100 votes for things that for some strange reason no one has told you anything about. >>> there is only one group the blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims. the house majority and their speaker, john boehner. last night, politics was placed before our oath, to serve our citizens. for me, it was disappointing and disgusting to watch. >> that was new jersey's republican governor chris christie today slamming fellow republican john boehner for cancelling a vote late last night that would have provided billions of dollars in federal aid to victims of hurricane sandy. in the spotlight tonight, republicans versus republicans. republican congressman peter king of new york attacked his leader's decision earlier today. >> rep

chris christie is the republican everyone is talking about. his approval rating is certain. over 70% approval. even after publically embracing president obama. wow, he actually lived to tell about it. the cover of "time" magazine simply calls him the boss. >> and, today, he made it clear what works. >> we're getting things done and we're compromise where we need to. it's not a dirty word. >> compromise is not a dirty word. pretty simple, right? but speaker boehner and republicans in congress just don't get it. boehner is vowing to stop direct talks with president obama in the future. and let me introduce you to this fella that he's got with him now. he's tom cotton. a newbie congressman from arkansas. today, he unvailed his big, new ideas. >> i think that the congress, as a whole, may be able to say no to barack obama a little bit more. >> genius. say hello to the president. what could possibly go wrong? good plan, mr. colt ton. . >> i don't think what washington needs is more compromise. i think what washington needs is more common sense and more principle. >> yeah, sure. w

then chris christie said i can do one better. boehner and the republicans as well. >> there is only one group to blame for the continued suffering of these innocent victims. the house majority and their speaker, john boehner. this is not a republican or democratic issue. national disasters happen in red states and blue states, and states with democratic governors and republican governors. we respond to innocent victims of natural disasters not as republicans or democrats but as americans. or at least we did until last night. >> cenk: strong words. if he's going to run in 2016, he said i was going to take on the republicans. if he's going to stay in new jersey he's fighting for his home state. a lot of people enjoyed this press conference, and he wasn't done yet. >> we vote for relief in other states. we're sending much more to washington, d.c. than we ever get back in federal spending. despite this history of unbridled generosity, in our hour of desperate need we've been left waiting for help six times longer than the victims of

that's exactly the kind of question chris christie would answer and in the wrong way. and, by the way, he accepts civil unions. that will kill you in this shrunken, extreme electorate. >> now, abbey, your father, john huntsman, he was recently talking about the state of his party. and it wasn't part of it. let me quote what he says. he says it's really tough to define republicanism today because we don't have a leader and we don't have a platform. the party right now is a holding company that's devoid of a soul. akd it will be filld up with ideas over time and leaders will take their proper place. devoid of a soul? that's pretty strong stuff from a republican. i do think chris christy and even my dad should be the face of that. they're reformers. in the sweet spot of their leadership is authenticity. they live in reality. they live in the real world. they realize and understand, you know, they can embrace things like civil unions and even gay marriage, heaven forbid, without sacrificing their core conservative principles. that's exactly what the republican party needs.

governor chris christie, thank you. happy to be back. >> remember what john neesam said. pulitzer prize winning author. it's all downhill from here. >> appreciate that. >>> coming up, "hardball's" chris matthews. more "morning joe" in just a moment. with the spark miles card from capital one, thor gets great rewards for his small business! your boa! [ garth ] thor's small business earns double miles on every purchase, every day! ahh, the new fabrics. put it on my spark card. ow. [ garth ] why settle for less? the spiked heels are working. wait! [ garth ] great businesses deserve great rewards. [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with double miles or 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! what's in your wallet? [ cheers and applause ] >>> up next, it's a funny way to say thank you. five years ago aig was rescued by the u.s. government. now the insurance giant is considering suing? claiming the bailout shortchanged its shareholders. we'll talk about it next on "morning

you know, looking broader at this potential primary, you've got chris christie. you've got rahn paul and paul ryan, marco rubio. all people who are thought of as potential candidates. who do you think right now is positioned best not for the general election, but for the base, for the primaries? >> that's a great question. you know, back to what karen said, it really depends on where the country is. i know it's an unsatisfying answer to say that it matters. to me chris christie is a kind of a throwback to a giuliani candidacy in certain respects. he is a guy who is sort of brash attitude, his willingness to kind of take it to fight is very reassuring the conservatives, right, in the same way that, you know, when giuliani who loved taking it to democrats, and that was important to them enough to overlook the fact that on substance he was not that conservative. the difference is, actually, chris christie is quite conservative on substance and he is brash and also able to do these things doing right now to put himself above the fray, above politics of usual. that's

and facebook ceo likes chris christie.dead battery,t tire, need a tow or lock your keys in the car, geico's emergency roadside assistance is there 24/7. oh dear, i got a flat tire. hmmm. uh... yeah, can you find a take where it's a bit more dramatic on that last line, yeah? yeah i got it right here. someone help me!!! i have a flat tire!!! well it's good... good for me. what do you think? geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. so i used my citi thankyou card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? and with all the points i've been earning, i was able to get us a flight to our favorite climbing spot even on a holiday weekend. ♪ things are definitely looking up. [ male announcer ] with no blackout dates, you can use your citi thankyou points to travel whenever you want. visit citi.com/thankyoucards to apply. >>> welcome back to the second half of "outfront." we start with stories where we focus on reporting from the front lines. we

chris christie is no susan collins. christie isn't even christine todd whitman. christie is a guy i could have served with in the hard core wing of the 1994 republican congress. he would have voted with me 100% of the time on these contract with america issues. he wouldn't have gone soft on some of the things that let's say a more moderate republican would go soft on. which is fine. but christie is a hard core jeb bush, joe scarborough conservative. and the fact that some people in washington, d.c. are angry at this guy because he did what any governor would have done. what jeb bush did when bill clinton came to the state of florida when we were having trouble, jeb bush worked with the man who beat his father in an ugly 1992 campaign. because jeb bush -- you put the interest of florida first. that's what christie is doing. i'm telling you. republicans have been taught a lesson in 2012. i hope it doesn't take 2013 and 2014 to drive that home. we're looking right now as the democrats of 1984. >> i don't like the term san francisco democrats. that was the knock on t

>> one of the few republicans to call the nra out for that video was governor chris christie.ake a look at what he said in a press conference just yesterday. >> to talk about the president's children or any public officer's children who have not by their own choice but by requirement to have protection and to use that somehow to try to make a political point i think is reprehensible. i think it's awful to bring public figures' children into the political debate. they don't deserve to be there, and i think for any of us who are public figures, you see that kind of ad and you cringe. >> chris christie i think is on the right side of this politically speaking for himself at home in new jersey. why aren't more republicans -- he's the only one i'm aware of who took this position. >> absolutely. chris christie once again -- first of all, he's consistent because he's yelled at people for asking about his own kids being private schooled, if you remember that youtube moment. but he's also one of the only republicans who doesn't seem beholden to the far right. i think that's part becaus

shame on congress. >> chris christie outraged on relief efforts. tonight, why he might get what he needs. >> >> live and in h.d. -- this is abc 7 news at 6:00, on your side. >> first at 6, the frustration over the fiscal cliff deal less than 24 hours after the house passed a bill. critics call it a band-aid that does not solve the long-term spending problems. >> big spending cuts are delayed for two months and ickes income taxes at the same level for the majority of americans. that means your taxes have gone

chris christie making inroads in that community is huge.h there, but there's also a tech talent gap that republicans have suffered from. the campaigns, when they're staffing up, they don't have access, all the time, to a lot of the most talented tech people, because they're all so liberal. but if chris christie can use his relationship with mark zuckerberg to ingratiate himself, that could help. >> he needs the obama apps. joe, you work for bill clinton, you know hillary clinton well, you worked with mark zuckerberg, so christie versus hillary, what's your take on who might be better in 2016? >> well, i obviously think that hillary is. i think if you look at just the politics of this, you know, chris christie is a conservative republican, in the state of new jersey. it's, you know, that's a tough road for a state that's fairly progressive. so it's no, you know, his campaign plan will be moderate, but i think he's very conservative, much closer to the tea party than the real, you know, traditional republicans. the one thing i come back to, t

chris christie is doing a great job there. priority is to represent the people of new jersey. that's what he's got to do best. >> look, party critics from the gop are basically going to say he's burning bridges and he's doing it just so he can get reelected and bashing congress is the easiest way to do it. do you agree? >> no. i don't think he's taking on congress to get reelected. i think he's doing what he has to do. remember, i'm from florida so i come from a state that gets hit by hurricanes. and when you are an affected state, what you want is you want quick action and you want other people to feel the sense of urgency no as an affected victim feel. i don't think that this is about his reelection. i think he's trying to do his job the best way he can. he's doing his job. we also have to cut john boehner some slack, i think. he had been in a marathon for weeks trying to get this fiscal cliff deal done. he finally made it. he did it at the last minute. he was fried that night. he didn't have the political capital. he didn't

i this that's the pathway to take. >> so you think chris christie is being smarter on this? >> i think they have all got to take their own path, but talk about what we believe and why we're standing up for our second amendment rights. >> we talked a little bit about hillary clinton, you also have joe biden, he's been ahead of this issue for a long time and a pers -- and senator gill brand, used to talk about how she had a gun underneath her bed and she's also someone who's talking about what do we do to stop gun violence. is this going to be even be beyond a conversation, i'm wondering, ted? is gun control going to be a kind of litmus test in 2016 for democrats? >> i think it could be. in presidential politics, there are basically two issues, the economy and war. and if the nation's economy continues to improve, if we're able to get out of afghanistan the way the president got us out of iraq. this issue of gun violence is emerging very quickly. and i have no doubt that it could become one of the dominant issues in the midterm election and also in the general election. >> als

from joe biden at the white house to chris christie in new jersey, andrew cuomo in albany, there's new energy for a comprehensive approach to gun violence control. chris cillizza, and kristen welker. thanks much to both of you. first of all, kristen, you were there today, joe biden opening the task force meetings for a brief photo opportunity saying something is going to get done. they have this end of the month deadline. it's going to be in the state of the union. but how comprehensive is this going to be and is it going to be any different from all of the other failed initiatives, frankly? >> well, we are expecting something to be quite comprehensive, andrea, and one thing out of the meeting is joe biden said the president is considering taking some executive actions. he's not sure what those actions are right now, but that's certainly something that's under consideration. we also expect some of the proposals that the vice president puts forth to include some legislative proposals, stiffer gun laws, including banning assault weapons, banning those high-capacity magazines, as well as

>> i think that chris christie's objections were differentit think he is very much upset about the delayt argue with him on na. we should have voted on this last year. but i can't imagine that mr. christie would attack me for wanting to pay for it. it sounds like something he might otherwise support. this was not done in the terms of delay. this was not done to try to kill the bill. it was a very straightforward argument, how worry we going to pay for it? i think chris christie would appreciate that. >> neil: quickly in the follow-up today, by tonight, we will be done with everything. will you vote for it? >> no. i am -- i am pretty certain that the last amendment tonight will pass, taking us to $60 billion. tell ultimately include the things like alaska fisheries and things in north carolina, damaged years ago, job placement programs, legal services, the roof on the smithsonian, weather balloons and satellites. that will end up in the bill tonight. that's unfortunate. i will have to vote against it. >> neil: it is. it robs the people who need the money. >> i think that's the riivetion h

chris christie does not. do you think people would realize even a guy they like can have policies they don't like or is charisma more important than ideology? >> is that a trick question? >> john: no, it's a very real question. look at george w. bush. >> we love charisma and we love politicians with swagger. he has done good things with new jersey. you drive through and it even smells better. >> john: who doubt, and who cannot cheer what he has done for sandy victims. >> and the police forces, they love him too. >> john: and we could use that tunnel to manhattan as well. >> to predict anything about what chris christie's bigger play is on the national scare right now-- >> that was a double pun in there. >> yeah, exactly. wait until there's not this desperate emotional place that we're in, and again you know, chris christie was amazing in new jersey, but to give someone credit for loving the state that they're a governor of and stem in and do whatever they want, it's like saying he doesn't feed his kids. he dr

and given what we saw happen with mitt romney, might it hurt a chris christie, you know?, coming out of the northeast, or romney had the similar problem. >> well, he's got -- he's got a similar challenge. if the republicans in the northeast who are almost an extinct and endangered species at this point, if they have a recovery, it will be somebody like christie. it is a rocky path. we can all see that. step by step, when he tries to be independent or he tries to criticize the republican establishment, he makes a bunch of enemies. some of those problems will come back to haunt him, when he -- if he does indeed hit the presidential campaign trail. on the other hand, i gave you the numbers for his state, there aren't too many ways to be a governor in the northeast that don't involve making some kind of compromises and appeals to democrats and especially to independent voters. >> errol lewis, thank you, for us from new york there. >>> now to this, this woman, married to another woman, married to this lieutenant colonel in the army, says the support group for military spouses

chris christie is doing a great job there.rity is to represent the people of new jersey. that's what he's got to do best. >> look, party critics from the gop are basically going to say he's burning bridges and he's doing it just so he can get reelected and bashing congress is the easiest way to do it. do you agree? >> no. i don't think he's taking on congress to get reelected. i think he's doing what he has to do. remember, i'm from florida so i come from a state that gets hit by hurricanes. and when you are an affected state, what you want is you want quick action and you want other people to feel the sense of urgency no as an affected victim feel. i don't think that this is about his reelection. i think he's trying to do his job the best way he can. he's doing his job. we also have to cut john boehner some slack, i think. he had been in a marathon for weeks trying to get this fiscal cliff deal done. he finally made it. he did it at the last minute. he was fried that night. he didn't have the political capital. he didn't have

chris christie comes on the program. mcguirk is a producer there. talking about the "time" magazine cover. throw it on up there and you say? >> i say first of all "time" magazine it's a dead mag walking. about as relevant as mother jones magazine or phil donahue for that matter. as far as the picture goes, i think it's amusing. he looks like he is sitting in a room -- small room with al roker getting gastric bypass advice. >> bill: he does look kind of ominous there gibson does he not? >> sure he does this. is part of the east coast christie love fest going on. >> bill: why would they make him look like a mafia guy if they love him? >> everybody loves tony soprano. why wouldn't they love chris christie. >> bill: i took it another way. >> if they did that to devol patrick or antonioville gross is a there would be whining. >> if they tried to make the mayor of l.a. look like al pacino in scarface there would be a problem. >> exactly. black and white thing looks like a mugshot of ravel cram cramlin going to the moon alice and got busted without the bus

but chris christie, i will give him credit, he finally stepped up and said at least this nra ad is badwhat about the guys calling for civil war, impeachment, attacking the president for being a king, imperial, rand paul. it's amazing the free run they're getting from the more responsible people, if they even exist, in the republican party. >> what's amazing to me is the president in his remarks with the vice president embraced the second amendment, made reference to the creator, invoked the name of ronald reagan, and still comes out of the thing as a socialist who -- >> a secret muslim socialist who wants to take your guns. >> perhaps the most disturbing trend since the newtown shootings has been the rise of conspiracy theorists who claim the whole thing was a hoax, part of an elaborate plan by the government to provoke enough anger to warrant rounding up your guns. websites, blogs, youtube videos have attacked the veracity of officials and official accounts of tragedy. they allege many of the people were actually actors. that the parents didn't show enough emotion and must be in the c

. >> coming up, chris christie's rise cannot be stopped except maybe by facts. >> john: chris christieice they named him twice. i'm just throwing out a possible slogan for christie's 2016 presidential run. governor christie still insists he's not thinking that far into the future. that's why he didn't mention romney's name in the first 15 minutes of his keynote address in the republican convention. christie said 2016 not even on his mind yet. >> what are the prospects of a christie-hillary clinton race. >> as good a prospects against anybody else. anybody who tries to plan four years from now is crazy. the fact of the matter is i'm going to follow the advise my mother gave me, which is to do the job you have right now as well as you can do it, and your future will take care of itself. >> john: like beating up on teachers' unions. i hate to be the one to rain on the christie parade. let's get past he seems like a really nice guy and he's charismatic thing. to quote a colleague here at "viewpoint," facts matter. under governor christie unemployment in new jersey is 9.6%. national unemplo

election, but that's precisely what makes so many centrists and people across the board like chris christie they don't like it, great, they're irrelevant in the grand scheme of things except in their own chattering class. >> i'm looking at you. >> let's hear it. >> christie has, quote, lost some of his luster on the right. how much damage has he done? after all, the guy has to win a primary? >> that's true, but you have to work the angles, erin. the possibility is he's not going to be the conservative stalwart champion. there are going to be a lot of people competed for the role. if there are five or six guys competing to the be the conservative stalwart champion who comes right down the middle and is like, hey, i'm a different kind of republican, i appeal to swing voters. i can actually win this election for you in a tough environment. hold your noses, vote for me even if you're not 100%, and i can win the white house. that's how bill clinton won in 1992. he took on a ton of liberal constituencies, but because the democratic brand was damaged in '92, he was able to distance himself from it