All Hands on the Third Rail

In his Washington debut on Wednesday, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) hammered state and national politicians for their fake solutions to the budget crisis. In a surprise to no one, most media representatives decided the takeaway from his address was that "maybe now he's running for president!"

Yet lost in all this talk of "Christie's moment" is the fact that New Jersey's governor said the moment for fixing government budgets is right now. Not next year, not after November 2012. 

President Barack Obama has abdicated leadership on the budget, Christie argues. Indeed, the president seems so obviously unwilling to take on our nation's staggering budget that Obama-boosters like David Brooks are calling him out for his empty rhetoric. Meanwhile many governors are realizing the deep trouble their state budgets face. Christie referred to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) as a "soulmate" and said "for God's sake, even Jerry Brown" is getting into the act. Gov. Mitch Daniels (R-Ind.) delivered a speech for grown-ups last Friday, terming the debt the new "red menace." The union turnouts in Wisconsin and Ohio show that something is starting to happen on reforming break-the-bank public pensions. 

Read Reason's budget coverage here.Watch Nick Gillespie and Veronique de Rugy discuss cutting the deficit on Stossel below: