Chris Christie is likely to announce he will not run for president, a source close to the New Jersey governor told FoxNews.com, ahead of a 1 p.m. ET news conference Christie's staff just added to the schedule.
The source said only the governor and his wife are certain of his decision, but added: "If you're going to make an announcement, the Trenton Statehouse is not the place to do it."
"I highly doubt he's going to announce," the source said. "I can't be 100 percent sure of anything until he does it. ... The odds are high that he's going to be a no."
The news conference, the topic of which was unnamed by the governor's office, comes after a string of denials from Christie about having any interest in running. At one point, he joked that he'd have to "commit suicide" to convince the political class he's not a presidential candidate. But speculation has heated up after Texas Gov. Rick Perry started falling in the polls following a blockbuster entrance in August.
The source said Christie was listening, but speculated that the recent announcements by states that they're moving up primaries, as well as "unfinished business" in New Jersey, helped dissuade him. The early primaries would give Christie even less time to mount a Republican primary bid.
"He was thinking he wasn't going to run for the longest time. His interest did get piqued due to Perry, due to the encouragement, but I think the reality of putting together the campaign ... proved to be at the end of the day a little too big of a hill to climb," the source said.
The source said only the governor and his wife are certain of his decision, but added: "If you're going to make an announcement, the Trenton Statehouse is not the place to do it."
Several reports say Christie has been meeting with family members and advisers as many high-profile Republicans urge him to seek the nomination. Christie has been silent in the face of reporters' questions in the last few days.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich is the most recent high-name Republican to urge Christie to join the race, with a spokesman telling the Columbus Dispatch that Kasich thinks Christie would be a good candidate.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll released Tuesday revealed that Christie would earn 10 percent of the vote in the GOP primary off the bat. That puts him below Mitt Romney, Perry and Herman Cain, but above the other declared candidates.
Asked whether they would like to see Christie run, 42 percent said yes, 34 percent said no and 24 percent answered that they had no opinion. In the poll of 1,002 adults taken Sept. 29-Oct. 2, 43 percent said the more they hear about Christie the more they like him. Twenty-three percent like him less and 20 percent said they hadn't heard enough.
There goes the most believable and certainly the most sane option for the GOP.
__________________
__________________
I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
TRENTON, New Jersey | Tue Oct 4, 2011 1:12pm EDT
(Reuters) - New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said on Tuesday he will not seek the Republican nomination to run for president in 2012, ending speculation of his possible White House bid.
"Now is not my time," Christie told a press conference, saying he had spent the past two weeks considering a run after being courted by big Republican donors.
"New Jersey, whether you like it or not, you are stuck with me," he said, adding he has "unfinished business" as governor.
Christie had said for months he would not seek the Republican nomination to run against President Barack Obama in 2012, saying he was not ready. But strong pressure from many donors and party activists concerned about the strength of the current Republican field prompted Christie to reconsider.
__________________
__________________
I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
not sure why the media is so on this... the guy has only said MANY times he is not running..... it's time to move on.
I think republicans just realize how much their lineup sucks, and are trying to draw someone in who is not so tainted. I mean when the most rationale person there believes in wearing magic religious underwear(or religion that does) it becomes evident we aren't dealing with the sharpest crayons.....
not sure why the media is so on this... the guy has only said MANY times he is not running..... it's time to move on.
I think republicans just realize how much their lineup sucks, and are trying to draw someone in who is not so tainted. I mean when the most rationale person there believes in wearing magic religious underwear(or religion that does) it becomes evident we aren't dealing with the sharpest crayons.....
Don't you be mockin our magic BVD's you heathen!
__________________
I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
Linear Mode
