Christie seeks the right time to jump into Governor's race

The last sitting U.S. Attorney to win election as Governor of New Jersey was Garret Wall in 1828. He declined to serve.: U.S. Senate PhotoChris Christie is not the only federal prosecutor with an eye on higher office. But if he decides to run for governor, he'll need to figure out the optimum timing of his formal announcement.

One man who can understand Christie's position is 88-year-old Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau. Back in 1962, just one year after John F. Kennedy named him U.S. Attorney for New York's southern district, Morgenthau resigned to make a gubernatorial bid against incumbent Nelson D. Rockefeller at the urging of the New York City Mayor Robert F. Wagner, Jr.

Morgenthau lost, 53%-44%. Partly, he said, because he entered the race too late. As U.S. Attorney, it would have been inappropriate for him to meet with officials or campaign donors to shore up support for a run, he said.

"I really hadn't laid any ground work and it was a very short campaign," said Morgenthau, who was soon reappointed to as federal prosecutor by Kennedy and served until several months after Richard Nixon took office. "The problem is kind of a rock in a hard place. As a U.S. Attorney, you shouldn't be going out soliciting support. On the other hand, without knowing what your support is, that's also a problem."

That's not to say Christie should take it as advice from Morgenthau.

"I never give anybody advice. Publicly or privately," he said.

Robert Del Tufo, a former U.S. Attorney from New Jersey, also ran for Governor -- but not until five years after he left office. And no sitting U.S. Attorney has been elected Governor of New Jersey since 1828, when Garret Wall was elected. He declined to serve.

Democratic lobbyist Michael Murphy had a similar choice to make that's similar to the one Christie could soon face. Murphy was Morris County prosecutor until 1995 -- the same time that Christie was a Freeholder there -- and sought the Democratic nomination for Governor in 1997. Although he didn't meet with anyone to talk about running for governor before leaving office, he knew he wanted to do it by the time his term was up.

And while he gave himself a lot of time to start laying the groundwork for a campaign, by the time he attended the 1996 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, he was behind the pack of other Democrats in jockeying for gubernatorial position. By that point, just about everyone else interested in becoming the Democratic nominee at the time -- James E. McGreevey, Rob Andrews and Susan Bass Levin, among others -- was holding some event or another to get their names out there.

"I said I'm in the best position. I'm going to everyone else's party and working the crowds," said Murphy.

But coming from a law enforcement background, especially a high visibility one like U.S. Attorney cuts both ways. The job comes with great press, which leads to great name recognition, and the people who don't like you typically can't even vote.

"When you're in one of those positions your only enemies are convicted felons and people disenfranchised form the vote. Other people see you as a crime fighter and a white knight," said Murphy, whose stepfather, Richard J. Hughes, resigned his post as a Superior Court Judge after Democratic leaders asked him to run for Governor in 1961.

But a good law enforcement official can't be seen as a politician, and forfeits a lot of the political infrastructure that other potential candidates build during the course of their careers. Still, Brendan Byrne managed to go directly from the bench to the governorship. Rudy Giuliani kicked off his political career on his reputation as a crusading, mob busting U.S. Attorney.

And Christie, of course, is no stranger to politics, having served as an elected official and GOP fundraiser before George W. Bush named nominated him 2001.

"I suspect when they test Chris Christie's name ID, he's going to be above the radar screen," said Murphy.