He does not return phone calls. He does not ask for support. He arrives late for meetings. And he acts as if he has all the time in the world.
The complaints have piled up for weeks, dismaying many longtime supporters of Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and sending others into the arms of his rivals for the presidential nomination, according to interviews with more than two dozen Republican donors and strategists.
As a half-dozen other candidates aggressively raise money and chase endorsements in Iowa and New Hampshire, friends and detractors alike say Mr. Christie’s view of his status and pre-eminence within the Republican field is increasingly at odds with the picture outside his inner circle.
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Policy advisers, donors and even a prominent New Jersey state senator who met his wife through Mr. Christie have all flirted with or committed to rival candidates. One potential donor, Woody Johnson, the billionaire owner of the New York Jets, will back Jeb Bush, according to three people close to the Bush campaign. Mr. Johnson attended a round of Bush fund-raising events on Wednesday in Chicago, where the former Florida governor acknowledged him by name.
In Iowa and New Hampshire, Mr. Christie’s negative ratings in some opinion polls are higher than his favorable ones. He has been slower than Mr. Bush to lock down support within the Republican Party’s pool of big-name “bundlers,” and it is unclear how quickly Mr. Christie is amassing cash. A spokesman declined to say, or even provide a range for, how much money the governor’s leadership political action committee has raised.
“He’s a very popular figure, but he’s made a mistake by not creating the necessary momentum for the kind of national organization you need to be successful,” said Anthony Scaramucci, a New York hedge fund manager who is now backing Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin. “He’s not touching enough people. And I think this is a classic rookie mistake.”
Friends say Mr. Christie is both understaffed and too controlling. They also say he is convinced that his raw talent and charisma can overcome the political obstacles in his way. Thomas H. Kean, a former governor of New Jersey and Mr. Christie’s onetime mentor, with whom he mended fences after a public break, said Mr. Christie had “gotten in the habit of kind of doing everything himself.”
“You can’t do that in a presidential campaign,” Mr. Kean said.
Mr. Christie is hardly without big-name support. In the coming weeks, he will attend fund-raisers around the country hosted by a number of prominent Republicans, including Meg Whitman, the chief executive of Hewlett-Packard, and Eric Cantor, the former House majority leader, who is now an investment banker.
“The fact is, there is not a finite pool of donors as some seem to suggest,” said Mike DuHaime, a top adviser to Mr. Christie. “An essential part of Governor Christie’s appeal is his ability to bring new people into the political process, whether they be donors or activists. He has proven this ability time and again in the past, winning handily in a blue state. If he decides to run, it is clear he will have the resources to run an aggressive, winning race.”
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Mr. Christie has recruited two former aides to Gov. Terry E. Branstad of Iowa to anchor his team there, and he has received dozens of invitations to speak in that state. His allies also point to their recent fund-raising events in Greenwich, Conn., a wealthy enclave that is home to several of Mr. Bush’s backers.
“Some guys move from Christie to Bush? That’s politics,” said Kenneth G. Langone, a co-founder of Home Depot and Mr. Christie’s leading supporter among New York donors.
Mr. Langone said he had been raising money for Mr. Christie’s new leadership PAC at a healthy clip, with many checks coming from big donors outside of Mr. Christie’s base in New York and New Jersey. “I’ve never had anyone say no,” Mr. Langone said.
The governor and his advisers have dismissed some defections with an air of almost imperious unconcern. Asked about the embrace of Mr. Bush by Mr. Johnson, who has hosted the governor numerous times in his Jets owner’s box, a person close to Mr. Christie brushed it aside by describing Mr. Johnson as a disgruntled team owner who got sweeter subsidies under Mr. Christie’s predecessors.
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RECENT COMMENTS
Miriam 2 minutes ago
As stated elsewhere, Meg Whitman funded her own campaign and, in her own words, "[came] up a little short." Eric Cantor lost his primary to...
CH 4 minutes ago
Chris Christie is finally being seen for what he is.... an imperious braggart who is convinced he can will himself to the presidency. He is...
Brock Stonewell 5 minutes ago
Jeb mentions Woody by name? Aww so special that makes him feel. So loved. This is what the Kleptocracy wants, America, to be publicly...
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Some supporters critical of the governor’s campaign blame what they call “the Christie bubble,” a tight-knit circle of advisers who have known him for years and have worked for him through most of his tenure in Trenton. Virtually impenetrable to newcomers, this small group is seen as effective at home but also, now, as shielding him too closely from the realities of a competitive national campaign. Even after the George Washington Bridge lane closings and the resulting scandal, and amid a continuing federal investigation, Mr. Christie has not broadly expanded his inner circle.
Mr. Christie has also alienated onetime supporters by seeming to take them for granted, Mr. Kean said, adding that the thank-you notes, personal meetings and returned calls have been in short supply. “They start to get crabby,” he said.
Other complaints have been more specific: Mr. Christie’s travel schedule is robust, but the message he is delivering about his leadership is not. His recent trade mission to London, meant to compensate for his lack of foreign policy experience, ended in commotion about his position on vaccination. On a recent trip to Iowa, some Republicans said, he spoke mostly about his biography and how frequently he had visited the state, but said little about what he would do if elected.
Some supporters have also blamed “the Christie bubble” for some embarrassing moments for the governor. He told supporters in recent weeks that he was relying on Robert B. Zoellick, the well-regarded former World Bank president, to offer him guidance on global affairs. But by then, Mr. Bush had already made his own overtures to Mr. Zoellick, a longtime ally whose relationship with Mr. Christie was tenuous. In an email, Mr. Zoellick said that in January, he had clearly conveyed that “I could no longer assist Gov. Christie.”
Supporters argue that Mr. Christie won two recent elections in a Democratic state and is connecting with voters and activists in New Hampshire and Iowa in a way that few other candidates have. Mr. Bush, they say, has not faced voters in nearly a decade and a half, and despite his rapid consolidation of the traditional Republican donor establishment, he has made only a few public appearances.
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Mr. Christie’s position is notably different from just a few years ago, when prominent Republicans around the country begged him to enter the 2012 race. At least three other major New Jersey donors and fund-raisers long presumed to be in Mr. Christie’s camp have attended or hosted events recently for Mr. Bush or have indicated they will back him, including State Senator Joseph M. Kyrillos, a longtime friend of Mr. Christie.
Mr. Christie is facing an intense challenge on his home turf not only from Mr. Bush but also from Mr. Walker, who is snaring those New York and New Jersey conservative donors who are skeptical of Mr. Bush. A luncheon for Mr. Walker at a Manhattan financial firm on Thursday drew about 30 current and potential supporters.
“People in New York City like winners,” said Jonathan Burkan, a financial services executive who co-hosted the lunch. “The fact that Scott Walker has won three statewide elections in four years is incredibly attractive to everyone.”