Being a Republican in a state with a Democratic legislature is not the handicap it might seem. While Corzine and other Democratic governors felt they needed to accommodate the wishes of the powerful county Democratic leaders to keep peace within the party, Christie feels no such compunction, says Ross Baker, a Rutgers University political scientist. “He just doesn’t give a damn,” says Baker. “One should never underestimate the value of fortitude in a politician. Chris Christie’s got fortitude in abundance.”

The rap on Christie from his sometime-ally Sweeney and others is that he can be gratuitously confrontational. His riffs go over big on YouTube (GOOG) but not in Trenton. State Senator Buono accuses Christie of “scapegoating and demeaning anyone who disagrees with him. That drowns out thoughtful, honest discussion and debate about the issues. All it really does is further undermine the public’s confidence in its government.”

The senate and assembly haven’t fought back hard because their standing with the public is lower than his. They might discover some backbone if the people of New Jersey—like, say, the people of Greece—start chafing under austerity. The state Civil Service Commission says 132 local governments have filed applications since January seeking to fire as many as 2,674 workers. In Newark, Democratic Mayor Cory Booker closed city pools in August and put nonemergency workers on 19 days of furlough. “We’re going to stop buying everything from toilet paper to printer paper,” Booker said. “Call me Mr. Scrooge, if you want, but there’ll be no Christmas decorations around the city.”