Christie rips ‘political and electoral poison’ Trump after GOP losses
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie pointed the finger squarely at former President Donald Trump on Tuesday night following more disappointing election results for Republicans across the country.
Responding to Daniel Cameron’s defeat by incumbent Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, Christie told CNN that the commonwealth’s attorney general had been “a rising star in the Republican Party until he decided to throw his lot in with Donald Trump.”
“I mean, let’s face it,” the former governor said. “Donald Trump is political and electoral poison down-ballot.”
Beshear defeated Cameron, who was endorsed by both Trump and US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), by five percentage points, expanding on his 0.4% margin of victory over incumbent GOP Gov. Matt Bevin from 2019.
“His endorsement has led to Republican defeats in the Senate and the House in ‘18. In ‘20, we lost the United States Senate and the White House. In ‘22, we underperformed miserably. And tonight, you’re seeing us lose again,” Christie continued.
“Daniel Cameron made a huge mistake by embracing Donald Trump and selling his soul to him. That’s what he did. And the voters — Kentucky, a very red state, as you noted — gave their verdict on politicians who sell their soul to Donald Trump,” he added.
Trump’s campaign was quick to fire back at Christie following the attack.
“Chris Christie is a loser who spends more time on the cable news casting couch embarrassing himself for a contributorship than he does on the campaign trail,” spokesman Steven Cheung said.
For his part, the former president blamed Cameron’s loss on McConnell.
“Daniel Cameron lost because he couldn’t alleviate the stench of Mitch McConnell. I told him early that’s a big burden to overcome. McConnell and Romney are kryptonite for Republican candidates,” Trump, 77, wrote on Truth Social, also referring to US Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah).
But Beshear and his allies also managed to outspend Cameron on the airwaves and the incumbent had been rated one of the most popular governors in the country.
Apart from Cameron’s loss, Republicans lost their majority in Virginia’s House of Delegates and were defeated in a Pennsylvania Supreme Court race.
In Ohio, voters backed enshrining the right to an abortion in the state constitution, defying the wishes of Republican Gov. Mike DeWine.
The one bright spot for the national GOP was Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves’ re-election victory over Democrat Brandon Presley.
Trump is overwhelmingly leading his GOP rivals, holding a 43.7 percentage-point edge over his closest foe, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, per the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate.
Christie is set to face off against four other Republican hopefuls at the third primary debate in Miami on Wednesday evening.
Trump will skip the verbal bout and hold a rally in nearby Hialeah.
