Former governor of New Jersey and former Trump’s aide talks on his recently announced presidential bid and why he is now against Trump for the GOP race.
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Chris Christie, a former governor of New Jersey, officially announced his bid for the presidency in 2024, joining a rising Republican field headed by the late President Donald Trump, setting up a rematch and expanding the field of G.O.P. contenders. Christie assisted Trump’s successful 2016 campaign as an adviser after getting defeated, but since then, he has criticized him for making unfounded accusations about the 2020 elections.
Chris Christie, 60, with his second presidential bid, has positioned himself as the candidate with most potential to take on both Mr. Trump, a former ally who is now his rival, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has been finishing second in almost all recent public Republican primary polls for months.
In contrast to the other Republicans running, Mr. Christie, who announced his candidature at a town-hall-style event in New Hampshire, attacked Mr. Trump head-on. In an uncommonly personal attack, he referred to Mr. Trump as “a bitter, angry man” and termed his record in office a failure. He also referred to an investment from the Saudi crown prince and indicted Mr. Trump and his family for making money from the presidency.
The other Republicans running against President Joe Biden are former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley and U.S. senator Tim Scott. A former vice president, Mike Pence, also announced his presidential run on Wednesday.
Chris Christie has already referred to Donald Trump as a loser because of his loss in 2020 and claimed that he is unqualified to hold office again after instigating a crowd to attack the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Mr. Christie has declared that he will not support Mr. Trump if he is the nominee.
However, polls indicate that Chris Christie is the least popular 2024 contender among Republican voters, raising the existential question: To whom will he appeal?
Various policy issues addressed by Chris Christie
Immigration
Christie has connected border security to one of his signature problems and has called for the border to be secured to stop the supply of fentanyl. Christie changed his mind about providing undocumented immigrants with an opportunity for citizenship during his 2016 campaign, calling the idea “an extreme way to go.”
Abortion
Christie has stated his support for abortion ban exemptions that permit abortions in circumstances of rape, incest, and when the mother’s survival is in danger. Christie, though, refused to back a federal abortion ban, stating that it should be handled at the state level.
Weapons
In recent times, Christie has linked mass shootings to mental health problems. In the 1990s, he backed a ban on assault rifles but was against it when he ran for president in 2016.
Entitlements
Christie pitched to make changes before entitlement programs fall bankrupt while several GOP candidates, most notably Trump, have called for their protection. Christie suggested several measures to strengthen Social Security during his presidential campaign in 2015, including an income restriction, an increase in the retirement age, and means testing qualifying it as “worthy of discussion.”
Chris Christie’s Way to Nomination
According to Chris Christie, he sees a way to the nomination and is not running as a “paid assassin” to target Mr. Trump so that other contenders might get support. He made a political joke highlighting it about his campaign: “Christie doesn’t care about winning, he cares about destroying Trump,” he stated. “How are those two things mutually exclusive?” he continued.
However, Chris Christie faces a difficult road to winning the nomination. He is a Republican from the Northeast who has avoided being involved in the Trump era’s cultural disputes. He will need to rely on attention from candidate debates to acquire traction. His campaign will rely significantly on media attention and his ability to move quickly to locations where that is most likely.
