Chris Christie has admitted that his endorsement of Donald Trump during the 2016 election cycle was a mistake.
In a new campaign ad released on Thursday (4 January) titled “Christie: I have an admission to make”, the former governor of New Jersey speaks directly to the camera and admits that he regrets endorsing Mr Trump for president.
Mr Christie has since become one of the former president’s biggest critics — though as recently as the 2020 election he worked with him on debate prep when he faced Joe Biden in the run-up to that election.
“Eight years ago when I decided to endorse Donald Trump for president, I did it because he was winning, and I did it because I thought I could make him a better candidate and a better president,” the former governor says in the ad.
“Well, I was wrong, I made a mistake.”
Mr Christie goes on to answer critics of the lower polling candidates for the Republican Party nomination — himself included — who argue that they should drop out and allow the much-expected rematch of Mr Trump vs President Biden to happen.
The former governor says he does not think this should be “acceptable” to voters, adding that Mr Biden’s policies are wrong and Mr Trump “will sell the soul of this country”.
“The most important characteristic for any candidate running for president of the United States is what’s in here,” Mr Christie says, tapping his chest. “The most important thing is character.”
When reached for comment on the ad by Politico, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said: “Chris Christie looks like a weak bitch.”
Despite having strong name recognition and a high profile on cable news, Mr Christie’s polling remains lacklustre with FiveThirtyEight showing him at 3.8 per cent nationally and at 3.7 per cent in Iowa.
On Wednesday, in an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, he said that anyone who expects him to drop out of the race for the GOP nomination is “crazy”.
