Chris Christie 2024! 🍗 Christopher James Christie - September 6, 1962 - Virgo / Tiger

[RTH10260]

[AndyinPA]

I have to say, I was impressed.

[raison de arizona]

Chris Christie is caught on a hot mic ahead of his expected announcement that he's dropping out of the presidential race:

He says Nikki Haley is "gonna get smoked" and a "petrified" Ron DeSantis called him.

[Sam the Centipede]

Mary Trump (no fan of Donald, oh no no no) covered the Christie thing in her email newsletter:

Chris Christie Dropped Out… But Took Donald Down With Him

Chris Christie eviscerating Donald today

Here are key quotes from Christie’s concession speech.

"I have known him well for 22 years... If you put him back behind the desk in the Oval Office… and the decision is needed to be made – as to whether he puts himself first or he puts you first – how much more evidence do you need that he will pick himself?”

Well, I could’ve given you the answer 50 years ago – Donald will only and always choose himself. And just as we did in 2020, it’s crucial for us all to keep spreading the word.

"Trump is unfit to be President...other candidates who are unwilling to say that are also unfit to be President."

She also suggests that if Christie himself has any real integrity he would endorse the only decent candidate in the race, TCG (the current guy), Joe Biden.

[bob]

538 ABC: Christie's withdrawal is good news for Haley:

The two were in danger of splitting the anti-Trump vote in New Hampshire.

On Tuesday, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called the governor of New Hampshire a "liar" for suggesting that Christie was considering dropping out of the Republican presidential primary. Instead, Christie insisted that he would remain in the race as long as he saw a viable path to the nomination.

On Wednesday, Christie dropped out of the race.

In all likelihood, though, Christie's abrupt change of heart didn't come about because he suddenly saw no path to victory. From the moment he entered the race, it was clear that he was too unpopular — his average favorable/unfavorable rating among Republicans is currently 22 percent to 57 percent — to seriously contend for the Republican nomination, and he never exceeded 4 percent in 538's national polling average. Instead, Christie probably withdrew to avoid playing spoiler to former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in New Hampshire.

From the beginning, the raison d'être of Christie's campaign was to oppose former President Donald Trump. Despite being the first governor or senator to endorse Trump in the 2016 primary, Christie has spent the last few years as a vocal Trump critic, calling him "disgusting" and a "dictator" who is "unfit" for office.

But Haley — who has been more measured in her criticism of Trump — is the one who has emerged as the preferred candidate of anti-Trump Republicans. And in New Hampshire, whose independent-skewing electorate makes Trump more vulnerable than in any other early state, Haley is the one best-positioned to defeat him. According to 538's polling average, Trump is currently sitting at 42 percent in the Granite State, while Haley is at 30 percent. Christie is in a distant third with 12 percent.

But Haley had a problem: A lot of Christie's voters were the type of anti-Trump Republicans or independents who might otherwise support her. According to an average of recent polls that asked Republican primary voters who their second choice for president was, half of Christie supporters nationwide said Haley, while just 6 percent said Trump. And in New Hampshire specifically, 52 percent of Christie supporters chose Haley; only 2 percent chose Trump.

If you assume that Christie's supporters will now just vote for their second-choice candidate, basic math says Haley will gain 6 percentage points (52 percent of 12 percent) in New Hampshire from Christie's withdrawal. Trump, meanwhile, will gain virtually no support. That wouldn't be enough to put Haley in the lead in New Hampshire, but it would make the race much closer, and increase the possibility that a solid debate performance, a strong finish in Iowa or even a normal-sized polling error could help push Haley over the top.

I tend to agree: Christie knew he never was going to win; he just decided now was the best time to cede the lane.

[AndyinPA]

He didn't seem to think any candidate who said he/she would pardon tfg deserved to win. That would include Haley.

[bob]

He didn't seem to think any candidate who said he/she would pardon tfg deserved to win. That would include Haley.

And Christie can't bring himself to endorse Biden, who obviously won't pardon.

So I think Christie's exit was strategic, but he still has a degree of ego (and party loyalty).

[raison de arizona]

I haven't had a chance to listen to the full speech yet, but the two or three excerpts I heard were good enough for this to pique my interest.

Chris Christie's campaign-suspending speech was remarkable. It’s one of the best political speeches I’ve heard in a very long time.

Do yourself a favor and watch it from beginning to end. Via
@jeffstorobinsky

[raison de arizona]

Good quick interview, worth a listen if you care what Christie has to say. Which you probably do, iffn' you are in this thread.

“My guess is that he’ll be a convicted felon when he gets on the stage to accept the Republican nomination for president.”

Chris Christie predicts the Supreme Court will not hear Trump’s appeal, and the trial will begin in May.

[raison de arizona]

Chris Christie: “The grift from this family is breathtaking. Jared Kushner and Ivanka Kushner walk out of the WH and months later get $2 billion from the Saudis. Do you think it’s because he’s some kind of investing genius?”