Chris Christie has a dilemma. I mean, besides the ones you may know about. Folks in New Jersey are waiting to see if he'll sign a bill that's on his desk. It's bipartisan with substantial support from both parties and polls say that over 90% of Democrats and Republicans support it. So signing it — whatever it is — oughta be a no-brainer, right?
Here's the problem: It's a bill to ban certain inhumane practices in the raising and butchering of pigs.
This wouldn't have that much impact on New Jersey because there isn't much of a pork industry there…but it would anger powerful forces in Iowa, where there is a huge pork industry. They'd take it as a slap in the face, a bad precedent and a victory for the folks trying to enact similiar legislation in their state.
Last year, Christie vetoed similar legislation. Why? People are saying it's because Iowa is a very important state to someone who wants to win the first Republican presidential caucus in Iowa in 2016. If you have your eyes on the White House, you don't want to piss those people off.
Then again, he may just want to avoid the jokes that he's protecting his own kind.