Chris Christie turned up his rhetoric on fellow presidential contender Donald Trump in an interview Sunday, branding the former president as a “petulant child” and a “loser.”
The former New Jersey governor appeared on CNN’s State of the Union, where he tore into Trump’s recent statements on former administration officials such as John Kelly, one of Trump’s numerous chiefs of staff, and former Defense Secretary James Mattis.
“Donald Trump—if you believe what he said when they left, that means he didn't pick the very best people and doesn't know how to pick personnel,” Christie said. “If you believe what—about them what he said at the beginning, the great stuff, then this guy is the worst manager in the history of the American presidency. Either way, Republicans should listen to what he says. He's a petulant child when someone disagrees with them.”
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Christie further blasted Trump’s etiquette on a potential debate stage, repeating his promise to treat the Republican National Committee’s pledge to support the eventual 2024 nominee “just as seriously” as when Trump refused to acknowledge it during the first Republican debate in 2015.
“I will do what I need to do to be up on that stage to try to save my party, save my country for going down the road of being led by three-time loser Donald Trump,” Christie said, citing Republicans’ performances in 2018, 2020, and 2022. “Loser, loser, loser.”
Still, even as he acknowledged Trump’s failures and promoted his quest to prevent the twice-indicted former president from winning a second term, he offered few concrete plans for his own potential presidency.
When asked by host Jake Tapper whether he would push for a national ban on abortion, as some Republicans (including fellow Republican nominee Mike Pence) have called for, Christie deferred to the Senate and a national consensus it may find. “Let's see what the states do here and see if they formed a national consensus,” he said. “Because there's no way you're going to get 60 votes in the Senate for anything unless you have formed a national consensus.”
In contrast to his competitors, Christie did offer a different, positive view on gender-affirming care for children, which has emerged as a galvanizing issue for his opponents, seeking to condemn the same. Christie stipulated that parents should be involved in the choices the children make, even if they’re under 18, rebuking some calls from conservatives to ban all forms of gender-affirming care. “The fact is that folks who are under the age of 18 should have parental support and guidance and love as they make all the key decisions in their life,” Christie said. “And they should not be one that's excluded by the government in any way.”
