Former New Jersey GOP Gov. Chris Christie attempted to pressure former President Donald Trump on Friday into participating in the first Republican presidential debate next week by calling the former president a “coward.”
Christie urged the former president to attend the debate Wednesday night instead of reportedly possibly skipping the debate for an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Trump has not publicly announced a decision to skip the debate.
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“If he believes he should be the nominee, if he believes that he’s got such a great record, if he believes he’s the best person to go against Joe Biden, then show up on Wednesday night and stop being such a coward,” Christie told MSNBC on Friday. “If what he were saying were true, which is that he’s got this great record as president and that he’s so far ahead, why wouldn’t you come on to the stage and take a victory lap?”
The former governor also took to social media on Friday to add pressure on Trump, calling him a “certified loser, verified coward.”
“Surprise, surprise…the guy who is out on bail from four jurisdictions and can’t defend his reprehensible conduct, is running scared and hiding from the debate stage,” the former New Jersey governor said Friday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Trump — certified loser, verified coward.”
Surprise, surprise… the guy who is out on bail from four jurisdictions and can’t defend his reprehensible conduct, is running scared and hiding from the debate stage.
Trump – certified loser, verified coward. https://t.co/plGjaBngVP
— Chris Christie (@GovChristie) August 18, 2023
Christie, who used to be a close ally to Trump, has been sparring with the former commander in chief for weeks. But the taunting heated up earlier this month when the GOP front-runner called Christie a “fat pig.” Christie responded that Trump should “look in the mirror every once in a while. Maybe he’d drop the weight thing off of his list of criticisms.”
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Nine Republican presidential candidates have appeared to hit the polling and donor thresholds to qualify for next week’s debate, but not every candidate has signed a loyalty pledge that is required to partake in the debate. So far, only five candidates have signed the pledge, but those who qualify and have not signed the pledge have until Monday to do so. Neither Trump nor Christie has signed the pledge.
The first Republican debate will be held Aug. 23 in Milwaukee. The debate is set to begin at 9 p.m. and will be moderated by Fox News.
