Chris Christie Taunts Trump as ‘Coward’ for Ducking GOP Debates: ‘Say it to My Face’

By Sarah RumpfJul 12th, 2023, 10:43 am
 
Chris Christie and Donald Trump

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie smacked back at Donald Trump’s Truth Social posts, mocking the ex-president as “the king of keyboard warriors” and calling him a coward for avoiding the debate stage.

Trump has held his position as the frontrunner in the 2024 GOP presidential primary, nearly 30 points ahead of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the national polling and 20 to 3o points in the key early primary states, according to FiveThirtyEight. Christie is currently in the third tier of candidates, polling in the single digits, but has made gains in recent weeks as he’s dug into a strategy of aiming directly for Trump’s jugular every time he can get in front of a camera.

Christie’s frequent attacks seem to have irritated the former president, as shown by several posts Wednesday morning on his Truth Social account, sharing polls showing him far in the lead and reposting memes shared by Trump supporters mocking Christie’s weight — and then a longer two-part rant about “Sloppy Chris Christie”:

Sloppy Chris Christie, who is polling at 1% and left his State, New Jersey, with an Approval Rating of 9% (the WORST number in State History), was interviewed on FoxNews (of course!) and stated that I only built 47 miles of Border Wall, knowing that the actual number is 463 Miles, as reported by the Department of Homeland Security. This does not include many Miles that we fixed or renovated, or areas that I got Mexico to secure. BEST BORDER EVER! He also lied about Russia & many other subjects!

Page 2: Sloppy Chris Christie is thrashing about, doing and saying anything to stay relevant. He desperately wanted to join the Trump Administration, but I said “NO!” In 2016, he spent most of his time away from New Jersey in order to campaign for President, much like Ron DeSanctimonious is doing now to Florida. Chris ended up getting run out of New Hampshire, where he had almost no vote or popularity. They knew him well – CHRIS CHRISTIE IS A TOTAL LOSER!”

Christie shrugged off Trump’s attacks with his own tweet telling Trump to put up or shut up.

“Donald Trump, the king of keyboard warriors,” tweeted Christie. “Donny, you got so much to say, why don’t you say it directly to my face on the debate stage?”

Christie closed with a challenge: “Or are you a coward?”

For months, Trump has said he plans to skip the first GOP debate, and Christie has taunted him about it before.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law & Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on the BBC, MSNBC, NewsNation, Fox 35 Orlando, Fox 7 Austin, The Young Turks, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and other television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe.