CHRISTIE PUNCHED – AT 9:33 A.M. ET:  There's no question about it – Chris Christie has taken a substantial hit in the polls ever since "Bridgegate" descended on him.  The mainstream media is delighted.  Who is this guy to challenge Queen Hillary? 

Nothing said against Christie has been proved, and he continues to deny any involvement in corruption.  But the constant pounding by The New York Times and others has hurt.  His defense has been entirely verbal and personal.  He's not been able to present any real evidence exonerating him, not so far at least.

And this is the worst kind of problem for a politician contemplating a run for higher office – a constant drip, drip, drip, in a state famous for underhanded political dealing.  The investigations into his office's behavior can be constructed to go on and on.  Many of the investigative agencies, like the U.S. Attorney's office, are in Democratic hands.  The numbers are telling.  From CNN: 

In late November and early December, in the wake of Chris Christie's landslide re-election victory, the Republican governor from New Jersey was riding high in the polls.

Christie topped the other potential GOP 2016 White House hopefuls in surveys of Republicans' choice for their next presidential nominee, and he was knotted up with Hillary Clinton in hypothetical general election showdowns.

Now, after month of intense media scrutiny over a couple of controversies in his state, Christie's numbers have faded, according to a new CNN/ORC International survey.

In a possible 2016 matchup with Clinton, the poll indicates Christie trails the former secretary of state by 16 percentage points, with Clinton at 55% and the Governor at 39% among registered voters nationwide. That's a dramatic switch from December, when Christie held a 48%-46% edge over Clinton.

"Christie has also lost ground among independents, who were the key to his strong showing late last year," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Christie got 59% support among Independents in December. Now that has dropped to 39%."

COMMENT:  This may well be fatal to any presidential dreams Christie has, but please remember that Clinton herself took a drop in the polls after she left the secretary of state's office, and there's no question but that Benghazi played a role.  In that case it is she who suffers from the drip, drip, drip.

We can count our blessings.  If Christie has to be cut from the scrimmage, I'd rather have it now than later, when the damage would be greater.

And miracle comebacks do happen in politics.  Nixon came back from a crisis over a slush fund in 1952, with his famous "Checkers" speech.  Clinton came back from charges of infidelity (they were true) in 1992.  And Churchill had been written off in British politics before his rebirth as a leader in 1940.  So predictions must be tinged with caution.

February 5, 2014