Corzine Out Of Intensive Care

New Jersey governor Jon Corzine is out of intensive care at last. His condition has been upgraded to stable but he will not be able to resume his duties for a while longer. 

Doctors upgraded Gov. Corzine's condition yesterday to stable and moved him out of the intensive-care unit as he recuperates from an April 12 accident.

But Corzine will remain hospitalized for at least another week, and will not resume his job duties until sometime after he leaves the hospital, the doctors and the governor's chief of staff said at a news conference at Cooper University Hospital.

They said Corzine was joking, watching television, reading newspapers and talking with family and staff. He was eating solid food, including a cheeseburger and carrot cake, and drinking protein shakes (he prefers chocolate).

The governor has even asked about issues such as the state budget and a plan to sell or lease state assets. "He's not as grouchy as you would expect him to be," chief of staff Tom Shea said. "He's fairly even keeled."

Shea said he was startled to find Corzine sitting up in bed, his arms raised and his hands clasped behind his head. And the governor was "showing off" how he could bend his knee, "which was impressive," said Robert Ostrum, Cooper's director of orthopedic trauma.

But Corzine gets tired easily, and doctors said that would continue. He remains on antibiotics and painkillers, and is coughing up sputum while recovering from 11 fractured ribs, a fractured left leg, collarbone, breastbone and other injuries.

When he returns to work will depend on his energy level, doctors said. "Because he can speak doesn't mean he's in a position to have an intense conversation about something," Shea said.

From the hints that are being dropped in the story, this may take a while. Everyone quoted appears to be saying that Corzine's injuries are going to keep him sidelined for some time.