Christie on NJN

So for all those Dems who are griping the only defense GOP has is "Torricelli did it".  All Torricelli did was break the law...

From Wickipedia:

As a political neophyte in 1972, Ashcroft ran for Congress in Southwest Missouri. Ashcroft narrowly lost the Republican primary to Gene Taylor, who went on to hold the seat for 16 years. After the primary, Governor Christopher Bond appointed Ashcroft as state auditor, the office Bond had vacated to assume the governorship.

As Senator and Governor, Ashcroft helped enact tougher standards and sentencing for gun crimes, increased funding for local law enforcement, and tougher standards and punishment for people bringing guns into schools. While Ashcroft was in office:

• The number of full-time law enforcement officers in Missouri increased 3,825 (63%) from 1985 to 1992.
• Capacity at Missouri corrections facilities increased by 72% from 9,071 in 1985 to 15,630 in 1993.
• Missouri was above average in the length of time criminals had to serve for all sentences according to Gail Hughes, deputy director for the state Corrections Department, citing the 1991 yearbook published by the Criminal Justice Institute. The national average for time served for all crimes was 23.7 months, while in Missouri the average length of a sentence was 28.9 months.
• According to the U.S. Department of Justice, prison time as a percentage of the time sentenced to jail was 73% in 1993 and increased to 86% in 1997.
• The number of juveniles who were arrested for committing a crime increased by 16.3% between from 1985 and 1992.
• Though Ashcroft initially opposed the legislation[citation needed], while he was governor, Missouri enacted its first hate crimes legislation, creating penalties for ethnic intimidation and crimes committed for motives based on race, color, religion, or national origin, and penalties for institutional vandalism for damages to ethnically-related buildings and property.
• While Ashcroft was governor, the legislature enacted the Missouri Victim's Bill of Rights, which allows crime victims to be informed of and present at criminal proceedings, the right to restitution, the right to protection from the defendant and the right to be informed of the escape or release of a defendant.