Chris Christie Slams the Door on Running for President in 2012

On Tuesday, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey announced that he would not enter the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Speaking at a news conference in Trenton on Tuesday afternoon, the governor of the Garden State reiterated his desire to stay out of the race.

My job here in New Jersey is my passion, said Christie, who said he did seriously consider entering the contest. I have a commitment to New Jersey that I simply cant abandon.

First elected to his current position in 2009, Christie has resisted calls to enter the race during the past year. Those calls amplified in recent weeks as Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, who entered the race in the middle of August, has stumbled in national debates and faded in many polls.

Christie has had solid poll numbers and a Washington Post/ABC News poll released on Tuesday morning found the New Jersey governor in a close contest with President Barack Obama, losing to the Democratic incumbent by a mere 2 points. Christie, who has won applause from conservatives across the nation for taking on public unions on pensions, placed fourth when matched against the current crop of Republican candidates -- behind Mitt Romney, Rick Perry and Herman Cain, and tied with Ron Paul.