By Jim Hoover

Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey is being courted to run for president. Perhaps it relates to his extremism. The Republican base likes radical right-wingers.

How can we identify his right-wing stripe?

Look at him, listen to him, and watch him. He is large. He is loud. He is a bully. He shows evidence of hypocrisy. He stands for the rich, and vilifies those without clout.

He casts a wide, imposing shadow at 5 ft 9 inches and over 300 pounds. Though the corporate media tends to ignore that fact, according to the standard body mass index (BMI), Chris Christie is morbidly obese. BMI estimates are not based on politics, but height and weight, which put Christie at 45 or above. Someone who is 40 percent overweight is twice as likely to die prematurely as someone of average weight. Such is relevant for a person running for high office.

There are other extremes for Christie. He is extremely opinionated. He bullies those who disagree with him, the numbers of which are growing, for he dresses down those who criticize him with demonizing quips and shouts. He is a large spender for his own needs and those of big business, and he has an arrogance not justified by his achievements.

Though pushing limited spending for his state, his own comfort and needs do not apply. Christie and his wife had a state-owned helicopter deliver them (above) to his son’s baseball game, dropping him within 100 yards of the baseball field where a waiting car delivered him to the field, this while the game was stopped temporarily.

A great deal of media pressure has followed. His initial reaction was to say he would not reimburse the state for the $2500 per hour helicopter ride.

As criticism continued, spokeswoman Maria Comella said that Christie paid $2,151 to the state to cover the cost of all trips. However, the state GOP paid $1,232 to cover the cost of Christie’s helicopter trip to fly 75 miles from his son’s game (after 5 innings) in Montvale to Princeton to meet with a group of top GOP campaign contributors from Iowa.

He has rejected the people and their interests in other ways.

Christie’s right-wing agenda includes pulling out of the Northeast region’s Greenhouse Gas initiative, involves a $1 billion cut to education, which a state court deemed unconstitutional, a rejection of a much-needed $9 billion rail tunnel investment, connecting NJ to NYC for much shorter commutes, for which the NJ share was less than $3 billion.

He cited a need to balance the budget as the reason for investment cuts in education and infrastructure, but, nevertheless, plans to give corporations nearly $1 billion in tax cuts.

Public office is something that Christie has been accused of using in past government positions, like US Attorney under Bush. He uses his position of governor now to promote his own personal agenda. He has repeatedly attacked teachers and public workers, and pushed privatization of public services wherever possible. He has used his forums of town-hall meetings and a 60-Minute appearance for prejudicial attacks on teachers and other public workers, while lauding private industry.

Like other Republican extremist governors, big corporations seem to be the only constituents who matter to him. But give him credit: He is openly for big business over the people.

One guarantee: With Chris Christie in the public scene you won’t be bored –perhaps unemployed, poorly educated, have daily long commutes, and/or nearly penniless, but not bored.