I agree. At a national level, Christie may be to the left on some issues and so people who are comparing him to Ted Cruz or some other more consistent conservative label him liberal. Using that label is unfair and a lot of the criticism of Christie is unfair. He has consistently tried to reduce costs in Blue New Jersey. For New Jersey, he is definitely conservative. He achieved a lot in taking on the teachers unions and the crazy New Jersey state and county pension system. For that, I will always admire him.
Christie is the best we could hope for in NJ; the alternative is unthinkable. He has tried to slow the death spiral of the state (unsuccessfully), but at least he identifies the problem. He is Tea Party through and through...