Christie calls Ramaswamy a Trump ‘wingman’

Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie is attacking rival Vivek Ramaswamy for his overt support of former President Donald Trump, saying he is “practically his wingman.”

“How do you run against someone and not talk about them? I look at what Vivek does here. He’s practically [Trump’s] wingman,” Mr. Christie told Fox News host Bret Baier Wednesday.

“He says he’s the greatest president of the 21st century,” said the former New Jersey governor. “Well, if he is, what the hell are you doing running? You should just drop out and endorse Donald Trump for reelection, which I think is essentially what he’s doing. I think he’s auditioning for a Cabinet position if Donald Trump were ever to become president again.”

Mr. Trump continues to be top in the polls with a significant lead. A Morning Consult poll shows the former president with 61% support from potential Republican primary voters. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis trails with 13%, with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Mr. Ramamswamy tied for third at 7%. Mr. Christie finds himself in fifth place with only 3%, behind former Vice President Mike Pence (5%).

Mr. Christie has been the most vocal candidate against Mr. Trump, continuously bashing him for his policies and for not showing up to the GOP debates, while Mr. Ramaswamy has taken to praising and defending the former president.

“I have no grievance against him personally. I have a grievance against what he’s done to our party,” Mr. Christie said of Mr. Trump. “He’s been a four-time loser.”

Mr. Christie pointed to Mr. Trump losing the White House in 2020, the House in 2018, and Senate seats in 2021 and 2022 for the party.

“He is losing for our party and it leads to these Biden policies,” he said.

He said Mr. Trump had offered him multiple positions in the White House, but he turned them all down. Mr. Christie was interested in becoming attorney general, a job that Mr. Trump gave to former Sen. Jeff Sessions.

Mr. Christie and Mr. Ramaswamy were supposed to appear together on Mr. Baier’s show, but after a threat from the Republican National Committee that they would be banned from other party debates if they went forward with the joint appearance, they decided to speak separately.