On Monday, former Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) criticized President Donald Trump, accusing him of treating his return to the White House as a mandate for personal enrichment.
Chris Christie Compares Trump’s Conduct To Vladimir Putin
In a post on X, Christie aimed at Trump, arguing that the president had adopted a mindset of entitlement during his second term.
“Here’s another thing Trump learned from Putin during his first term,” Christie wrote, adding, “Trump and his family believe they have license to take whatever they can take.”
Christie also shared a clip from an appearance on ABC News, where he expanded on his criticism. He said Trump and his family appear to believe that winning the 2024 election gave them “license” to benefit financially while in office.
Drawing a comparison to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Christie described Trump’s actions as “Putin-esque type of corruption and self-enrichment.”
He also argued that while many federal ethics laws do not apply to the president, constitutional concerns remain.
Here's another thing Trump learned from Putin during his first term. Trump and his family believe they have license to take whatever they can take. This is Putin-esque corruption and self-enrichment. pic.twitter.com/U9NStIHFYA
— Chris Christie (@GovChristie) July 6, 2026
Qatar Jet And Crypto Earnings Fuel Fresh Criticism
Christie’s remarks come as Trump faces renewed scrutiny over a Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA) 747 gifted by Qatar for presidential use.
Trump boarded the aircraft for the first time during a trip to North Dakota, calling it “appropriate for a President” and saying there had “never been a plane like this.”
Christie challenged Trump’s repeated claim that the aircraft would not cost taxpayers anything, saying the jet would still require hundreds of millions of dollars in upgrades to meet Air Force One standards.
The criticism also follows Trump’s latest financial disclosure, which showed more than $1 billion in income tied to cryptocurrency ventures in 2025. The filing included hundreds of millions of dollars from token sales linked to World Liberty Financial, equity sales in its holding company and royalties connected to the Official Trump memecoin.
Asked about the crypto earnings during a CNBC interview, Trump defended the ventures, saying, “There’s nothing illegal, there’s nothing wrong with it.”
He added that he had been involved in cryptocurrency before returning to office and largely dismissed concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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