A little over a year ago, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was helping prepare then-President Donald Trump for a debate against Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
In the months since, Trump's unhinged lies about the validity of the 2020 election have transformed the political landscape by eroding conservative voters' trust in American democracy.
Even after these lies sparked a deadly failed insurrection against the United States Capitol, Trump continues to claim the election was "stolen" from him by Democrats engaged in widespread election fraud—a complete fantasy.
In recent comments to the Republican Jewish Coalition, Christie implored the party to stop promoting these election delusions.
Watch below.
Chris Christie's advice for the GOP: "We need to face the realities of the 2020 election and learn, not hide from them. We need to discredit the extremists in our midst... the conspiracy theorists and the truth deniers."pic.twitter.com/GUj85sk3Tk— Andrew Solender (@Andrew Solender) 1631241725
Christie said:
"We need to face the realities of the 2020 election and learn, not hide, from them. We need to discredit the extremists in our midst the way we've done it before. ... We need to renounce conspiracy theorists and the truth deniers; the ones who know better and the ones who are just plain nuts. We need to give our supporters facts that will help them put all those fantasies to rest, so everyone could focus with clear minds on the issues that really matter."
In a separate interview with CNN, Christie warned that Trump needs to "begin talking about the future and tell the truth about the election and move on," though he emphasized he didn't know if Trump would take that advice.
If a new statement from Trump is any indication, Christie shouldn't hold his breath.
NEW!\n\nPresident Donald J. Trump:\n\n"Chris Christie, who just made a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) in Las Vegas, was just absolutely massacred by his statements that Republicans have to move on from the past, meaning the 2020 Election Fraud. Everybody remembers...pic.twitter.com/D91UVPHS6t— Liz Harrington (@Liz Harrington) 1636410209
Trump said of his former allly:
"Chris Christie, who just made a speech at the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) in Las Vegas, was just absolutely massacred by his statements that Republicans have to move on from the past, meaning the 2020 Election Fraud. Everybody remembers that Chris left New Jersey with a less than 9% approval rating—a record low, and they didn't want to hear this from him!"
The schadenfreude was real.
Goodness. Imagine you\u2019re Chris Christie and you sold what little of a soul you have left to trump and he says this about you - and now imagine you\u2019re ABC news and keep booking him for the Sunday panel.https://twitter.com/ronfilipkowski/status/1457837763877916682\u00a0\u2026— judi hayes (@judi hayes) 1636411194
.@ChrisChristie looks like your boy has turned on you.https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1457837763877916682\u00a0\u2026— Liberalgirl3 (@Liberalgirl3) 1636412193
https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1457837763877916682\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/jzA87ZOq3O— Ty Bates (@Ty Bates) 1636415338
fight fight!! Split the vote!— Thank God for President Biden \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc99 (@Thank God for President Biden \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8\ud83d\udc99) 1636411057
You love to see it.— M.A. Brown (@M.A. Brown) 1636411118
The best part of this is that Christie's approval went down because he abandoned the state to suck up to Trump— \ud835\udd4a\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd54\ud835\udd54\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd53\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd64 (@\ud835\udd4a\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd54\ud835\udd54\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd53\ud835\udd66\ud835\udd64) 1636412941
People also found it funny that Trump chastised Christie over approval ratings.
Trump\u2019s approval rating never crossed 50% in 4 years.— Elliott69 (@Elliott69) 1636412621
Speakin of LOW APPROVAL RATINGS DONNIE BOY!https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1457837763877916682\u00a0\u2026— DON'T PISS ME OFF (@DON'T PISS ME OFF) 1636410781
Probably not the guy who should be talking about approval ratings...— KingOfCups (@KingOfCups) 1636412360
Christie is among a handful of Republicans potentially running for the presidential nomination in 2024.
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