60 Facts About Chris Christie You May Not Know

Chris Christie is a man of contradictions, and now the expansive governor from New Jersey has one foot on the presidential race train.

So what do we know about this guy who shares my last name, but is only my distant, distant relative? First, he doesn’t know I exist. So, none of this involves my first-hand knowledge.

Surprisingly he does exhibit a few my Christie family traits. He is stubborn, intense, and a very independent thinker.

But here are 60 surprising things you may not know about the outspoken New Jersey Governor:

1. His sister was adopted.
2. Christie has a younger brother and?a younger sister.
3. He is the eldest of three children.
4. The governor was born in Newark, N.J. After the riots, the family moved to nearby Livingston.
5. His father was Irish, and his mother was Sicilian.
6. The governor describes his parents relationship as: “Dad was just a passenger; Mom was the driver.”
7. Both of his parents had tempers and argued. But they were close.
8. Christie’s middle name is James.
9. The nickname ?Chris? does not stand for ?Christie? but for his first name, ?Christopher.?
10. His mother said she didn’t realize the duplicate name until she brought him home from the hospital.
11. As a child, Scooby-Doo?was his favorite television show.
12. When he was 14, he heard then legislator Thomas Kean speak. When he told his mother that he wanted to be a politician, she drove him right over to Kean’s house. Then she told him to go up to the legislator’s door and knock. He did.
13. Governor Kean is Christie’s political mentor.
14. Kean said he might not vote for Christie as president.
15. Christie was his high-school class president for three years.
16. He took a girl named ?Melina? to his junior prom.
17. His father was a CPA.
18. Christie was an athlete all throughout high school.
19. He was the captain of his high school baseball team.
20. He has been a fan of the Dallas Cowboys since childhood.
21. The governor wears an orange good-luck sweater, and he recently wore it to a Cowboys? game. The team won, but don’t place any bets on the sweater.
22. He studied political science at the University of Delaware.
23. He met his wife, Mary Pat Foster, at university.
24. Mary Pat Christie earns more than her husband.
25. She earned $307,372 in 2011 as a part-time vice president.
26. Mary Pat now works full time on strategic planning and marketing focusing on bank debt and distressed funds.
27. They have four children, two of each kind.
28. The governor’s long-time favorite musician is Bruce Springsteen.
29. One time, Christie flew to London just to catch a Springsteen concert.
30. He sings along during concerts.
31. Christie has a Fender guitar signed by Springsteen.
32. He has been to more than 130 of Bruce Springsteen’s concerts.
33. Christie began as a supporter of the pro-choice position.
34. He gave Planned Parenthood a donation in 1994.
35. Christie now identifies as pro-life?and states:??I am pro-life. I believe in exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. That’s my position. Take it or leave it.?
36. When he was 30, Christie ran for state senate against a popular, incumbent senator. He lost big time.
37. His platform was gun control and pension reform for lawmakers.
38. As governor, Christie demanded the release of Brian Aitken in 2011 four months after imprisonment. Aitken was sentenced to seven years in prison for the possession of firearms, but he legally owned those weapons. As a result of the fiasco, Aitken lost everything including custody of his son.
39. He was US Attorney for New Jersey where he had 130 convictions and 0 acquittals.
40. He arrested dozens of corrupt politicians, child pornographers, and violent gang members.
41. His theme during this period was ethics.
42. He was a top fundraiser for George W. Bush’s 2000 campaign along with a friend. They raised over $500,000.
43. Bush 43 nicknamed him, ?Big Boy.?
44. Christie ran for governor in 2009 after a long lull as a lobbyist.
45. He thinks global warming is real and caused by people, but he took New Jersey out of climate change efforts.
46. Christie considered windmills off of New Jersey’s coast.
47. He was a lobbyist for energy companies.
48. He nominated a Muslim man as a state judge.
49. When criticized in 2011, he told CNN’s Piers Morgan😕“You have to understand that we are not a religious democracy. Religion to me is a personal thing. And so, you know, I have to make certain decisions. My decisions are going to be made based on what I think is best for all the people of New Jersey. My Catholicism informs part of who I am. But it does not rule who I am.”
50. Although Christie is a long-time Republican, he is an advocate for the path to citizenship.
51. He has always struggled with his weight.
52. When then Governor Jon Corzine hinted about it in a political ad in 2009,?Christie reacted😕?Man up and say I’m fat.”
53. Christie is bothered by those who say his weight shows he’s undisciplined. This is a position that many researchers now support.
54. He believes homosexuality is not a sin, and people are born that way.
55. The governor signed a ban on gay conversion.
56. He is anti-legal marijuana.
57. Christie thinks that it is okay to monitor library book selections.
58. The governor eliminated all public broadcast funding in New Jersey.
59. He was named one of the top 100 most influential people by TIME magazine in 2011 and 2013.
60. He is famous for his more than direct?quotes:

“Get the hell off the beach in Asbury Park.”
? Warning residents as Hurricane Irene approached in 2011

?I can walk and chew gum at the same time.”
? Defending himself in 2013 against critics who wonder whether he can run the state and run for president at the same time

“Sit down and shut up!”
? Responding to a heckler at a town hall meeting in 2014

Resources used for this article:

The New Yorker
The Famous People
Politico
Washington Monthly
NJ.com – True Jersey
Biography
Henderson Dispatch
Daily Caller
Politifact
Ballotpedia
On The Issues – Principles and Value
On The Issues – Christie’s Rise
Chris Christie: The Inside Story of His Rise to Power