It May Be A While For Marriage Equality Vote In New Jersey

New Jersey's Legislature in February passed a marriage equality bill in February, a bill Gov. Chris Christie shamelessly vetoed for political gain. So with marriage equality now passed by three states' electorates, you would think the Garden State lawmakers would start thinking about going that route and putting marriage to a popular vote. Turns out, not so much.

Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, a Democrat who sponsored the vetoed bill, told The New Jersey Journal, "I still don’t believe we should put civil rights onto a referendum." That leaves either the Supreme Court or another legislative battle.

...It looks as if the battle for gay marriage in New Jersey will continue on the same two fronts: in court, with a case pending in the state Supreme Court; and in the Legislature, where Democrats have another year to cobble together the two-thirds majority needed to overturn Christie’s veto.

And while Democrats and gay rights advocates say their stand against a referendum is based on principle, a victory wouldn’t be as easy next year, with lower turnout and Christie expected to be at the top of the ticket.

Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Union), a gay marriage sponsor, left the option of putting the issue on the ballot as a "last resort" — only if Democrats can’t override it, their court case fails and they are unable to defeat Christie next year.

Garden State Equality Chairman Steven Goldstein told the paper that Christie, whom he described as "the best political strategist I've ever met in my life," should start to smell the political change in the air and shift his position.

"I hope the election of 2012 has taught him that his two goals — keeping New Jersey happy and keeping his presidential prospects on fire — are no longer mutually exclusive," he said. "America, just like New Jersey, has turned the corner not only on marriage equality, but on a host of other social issues."

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Chris Christie Completes More Than Half of RNC Keynote Before Mentioning Romney: VIDEO

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's RNC keynote speech was all about him.

The NYDN:

He didn’t mention President Obama by name, and waited until he was about 16 minutes in until he finally said the R word — Romney — leading to TV images where the GOP candidate and his wife looked less than thrilled.

Christie instead started out with a gentle touch, evoking warm images of his mother, the real boss of his family. But it wasn’t long before he got down to politics, citing New Jersey’s track record — under his leadership, of course — as an example of the strides that could be made under a Romney administration.

“When I came into office, I could continue on the same path that led to wealth, jobs and people leaving the state, or I could do the job the people elected me to do — to do the big things,” he said, not failing to mention his successes have come in a state where Democrats enjoy a huge voter-enrollment edge.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Chris Christie Previews RNC Keynote, Says Romney Probably Regrets Birther Joke: VIDEO

Chris Christie sits down with Matt Lauer on Today to preview his keynote speech tonight at the Republican National Convention. Christie denies reports that he turned down the VP slot because he thinks Romney can't win.

Lauer also asks Christie whether Romney should release more tax returns, and if he should have made a birther joke last week:

I think if he had to do it over again, he wouldn’t make the joke. But you know what, when you’re on camera 12, 14 hours a day, and you’re at a big rallies and you’re just going off the cuff, there are going to be times you’re going to say stuff you wish you could take back. If you get a chance to talk to Governor Romney, I think he’d tell you that he wishes he could take that one back.’

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Chris Christie to Give Keynote Address at Republican Convention

Chris Christie will give the keynote speech at this month's Republlican National Convention in Tampa, the NYT reports:

The scheduling decision was first reported online by USA Today early Tuesday and confirmed by Republican officials directly involved in convention planning. The Republican officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because the formal announcement was not planned until later Tuesday.

"I'll try to tell some very direct and hard truths to people in the country about the trouble that we're in and the fact that fixing those problems is not going to be easy for any of them," Christie told USA Today in an interview announcing his speech. He said he will describe his experiences in New Jersey as evidence that "the American people are ready to confront those problems head-on and endure some sacrifice."

The keynote speech is the highest profile spot for someone not accepting the party's presidential or vice presidential nominations.

More here.

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Michael Phelps results... find out AFTER THE JUMP.

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