Christie the Pug

    In the summer of 1960 I stayed with my Uncle George and Aunt Laura in Lowell, Massachusetts, awaiting the return of my family from Morocco where my father had been on a diplomatic mission. Uncle George's favorite pastime was watching TV, especially a weekly boxing show called Friday Night Fights. I enjoyed watching the bouts with him and listening to his monosyllabic commentaries (Oof! Pow! Ouch!).

    This was the era of fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson, Carmen Basilio, and Kid Gavilan. But our favorite was a pug named Gene Fullmer. He was actually pretty good, earning his first Middleweight crown by beating Robinson. But if Robinson was the classic boxer, Fullmer was the bull, charging at his foes to get inside where he did his greatest damage. It didn't matter that he took a battering on the way. His face showed it, with cauliflower ears, scarred eyebrows, and a flattened nose.

    Governor Chris Christie kind of reminds me of Gene Fullmer. He's a fighter who doesn't mind mixing it up on the inside, whether it's at a town hall meeting or a presidential debate. He takes shots from his opponents, but dishes them out, too. His devastating attack on Marco Rubio at the February 6 debate is the perfect example of his counter-punching skills. I think he would be equally effective in debating Hillary Clinton.

    I don't know if Governor Christie is the best Republican candidate for the presidency. But I think he has shown that the experience of the governors in the race make them the best qualified. At the very least he has demonstrated that a president must be able to take criticism without wilting like Rubio or responding with hissy fits like Trump.

    I may be a bit of a troglodyte in wishing we still had Friday Night Fights, but for now I'll settle for the give and take on the debate stage. If nothing else, it is great entertainment.