Hollis, New Hampshire – With less than three weeks left until the first primary in the race for the Republican presidential nomination in New Hampshire, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has addressed his verbal attacks on his rival, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. It is increasing.
The former New Jersey governor has called Haley's actions “immature” after her comments went viral that New Hampshire voters “corrected” the results of the Iowa caucuses. He claims that if former President Trump, the front-runner for the Republican nomination, asked Haley to be his running mate, “she would do it in five seconds.”
Haley, a former South Carolina governor who later served as the Trump administration's ambassador to the United Nations, has gained significant momentum in recent months and is surging in the latest polls in New Hampshire, where she has narrowed the gap with Trump significantly. is suggested.
But this week, two new comments by Ms. Haley were used as immediate ammunition for Ms. Christie, who is running for the White House for the second time and is once again betting her presidential campaign on a strong showing in New Hampshire. Christie ranks third in most Granite State polls, well behind Trump and Haley but ahead of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and billionaire entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. ing.
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“We have a chance to get this right, and I know we can get it right,” Haley told a large crowd while campaigning in Milford, New Hampshire, on Wednesday. “I trust you. I trust each and every one of you. You.” “You know how to do this. You know Iowa is starting it. You know you'll fix it.”
“And my beloved South Carolina brings it home,” Haley said, referring to her home state, which will host the first Southern campaign event on the Republican presidential primary schedule on Feb. 24. he added.
The comment seemed to be in keeping with Granite's stator, as the crowd cheered at Haley's statement.
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Thursday night, Christie took aim.
“You don't have to fix what Iowa is doing or not doing. That's not New Hampshire's responsibility. Your responsibility is to do what you think is right. There is no need to worry,” he said. A crowd gathers at City Hall in this New Hampshire town along the Massachusetts-Southern border.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, 2024 Republican presidential candidate, speaks with voters at City Hall in Hollis, New Hampshire on January 4, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Minutes later, he told reporters: “I think the people of Iowa saw here yesterday that she was willing to say anything to curry favor with the audience.”
“She's mocking Iowa voters just to get a laugh from New Hampshire voters,” he claimed. “I mean, that's just immature. Grow up.”
Christie wasn't the only rival to attack Haley.
DeSantis, who has staked much of his campaign on a strong finish in Iowa, said Thursday in an interview on local radio in the Hawkeye State that Haley “needs to fix their votes in some way.” is incredibly disrespectful to Iowans.”
Haley said during a CNN town hall in Iowa on Thursday that she meant her comments as a joke. “We've done over 150 town halls. I hope you have a little fun, too.” Stated.
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In recent weeks, DeSantis and Christie have accused Haley of not being a vocal enough critic of President Trump. Both candidates claim Haley has ulterior motives.
“She won't answer directly. She owes you an answer on this. Will she accept Donald Trump's nomination for vice president? Yes or no?” DeSantis said last month in New Hampshire. He said this at City Hall.
Additionally, Christie has said multiple times over the past month, “Both Ron DeSantis and I have ruled out the possibility of accepting the vice presidential nomination from Donald Trump. Nikki Haley is not…so she is・I'm not saying anything strong against Trump.''
Haley has frequently reiterated that she has no intention of running second in the 2024 Republican presidential primary.
In an interview with Fox News Digital ahead of a town hall in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Haley, who was given the opportunity to firmly deny being asked to be President Trump's running mate, reiterated that she is running to win. Ta.
“I've said from the beginning that I'm not going to play second. It's disgusting for anyone to think that I'm going to do this much to play second. So I've said that from now on. I'm going to keep saying that. If people do that, I don't know what else to say because I'm not happy with that,” Haley said.
Haley also told Fox News that Christie and DeSantis have “criticized me about everything. Let me be clear: That's what happens when you're losing.”
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“She doesn't answer. She gives a strong answer, 'I'm never going to play second fiddle,'” Christie told reporters Thursday night, referring to the Fox News Digital interview. “What does that mean? It's simply yes or no. Would you accept or not accept the vice presidency from President Trump?”
“She won't answer. And you know what not answering a question means in politics. It's because she knows the answer and doesn't want to say it out loud. '' Christie insisted. “Let me tell you right now, if Donald Trump made an offer for vice president, she would take it in five seconds. In five seconds. That's why she's not answering the question.”
Christie said, referring to South Carolina's Republican presidential primary on Feb. 24, that Haley “didn't do as well as everyone thought she would do here, and when she lost her own election. “We want them to have some wiggle room to do that later.” In her home state, she intends to do so. ”
In an interview with New Hampshire union leaders, Haley argued that her vice presidential candidate's withdrawal would be “in the news for days” and would dampen her momentum.
Christie, a longtime Republican and vocal critic of Trump, has faced a lot of pressure in recent weeks to drop out of the race and support Haley in order to avoid splitting the anti-Trump vote.
“Tonight, I saw all these people who don't want to take me out of the race. They want to vote for me,” Christie said, referring to the crowd of nearly 300 people gathered at City Hall. I think a lot of people are like that.” If I drop out, people here won't vote at all, because she's not going to run against Trump. ”
When asked by Fox News where he would need to finish in New Hampshire to continue, Christie said, “I'd have to finish in second place or very close third place. There's no mystery about that. I think that's what I have.'' to do. ”
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Trump holds a formidable double-digit advantage over DeSantis and Haley in Iowa, where the Republican nomination calendar begins with the Jan. 15 caucuses, and national polls of the Republican race But it enjoys an even bigger lead.
But the latest polls show Haley closing her lead in New Hampshire, where independent voters have long held sway in the state's storied primaries and the Trump campaign. This week, it launched ads attacking Haley in the Granite State.
Former President Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Durham, New Hampshire, Saturday, December 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Leva Saldaña)
“Haley has what every candidate wants: momentum, and she's closing the gap with Trump,” Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics, told Fox News. he said.
Haley received a major boost last month with the endorsement of New Hampshire Republican Gov. Chris Sununu. Sununu has been accompanying Haley on her campaign trail at City Hall since supporting her.
She is also supported by Americans for Prosperity (AFP) Action, the political arm of an influential and well-funded conservative public advocacy group with a strong grassroots campaign.
“One thing we know about the New Hampshire primary is that elections are determined by momentum,” said Greg Moore, a longtime New Hampshire-based conservative activist and senior advisor at AFP Action. “That's a lot. We saw that with John's election, for example.” ”
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