CNN, of course, was on the discord like fat on a pork butt. “Nancy Modlin, another North Carolinian and a self-described home-schooling mom, expressed disappointment that Christie chose to attend a forum hosted by Clinton instead of spending a day in Washington meeting with conservatives. ‘I am disillusioned with him,’ Modlin said. ‘I see too much two-facedness, trying to ride both sides of the fence for his own gain. I’m not sure what he is right now, with the way he philanders with a variety of people, Democrats like Bill Clinton. What does that tell you?’”

It tells you that Chris Christie is The One. Republicans are talking about him. So are Democrats. Soon, maybe, there won’t be any fat jokes possible. The Young Bucks in the Senate are peaking now — way early. And Mr. Christie is the great unknown.

But he won’t be running as a conservative. And he might just be the only Republican who realizes the Republican Party — for good or bad — might now just be a terrible fit for modern America.