Republican publishing tycoon and New Jersey native Steve Forbes today endorsed former U.S. Attorney Chris Christie for governor in a column in his magazine.  

Likening Christie to former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Forbes – who ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 1996 and 2000 – said that Christie “comes across as a leader who has the smarts and determination to get big things done” and “won't let conventional political wisdom deter him from his course.”  

In the column, Forbes lamented New Jersey’s lagging economic growth, blaming the state’s economic stagnation not on the national economic climate, but on high taxes.

“A New Jersey governor's powers are the strongest in the nation, and Christie is a man who will know how to use them to their fullest.”