Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is making an unorthodox pitch to Republican primary voters — by admitting he erred in endorsing Donald Trump in 2016.
Christie, now 61, famously threw his support behind Trump after dropping out of the GOP race eight years ago following his sixth-place finish in the New Hampshire primary.
“When I decided to endorse Donald Trump for president, I did it because he was winning, and I did it because I thought I could make him a better candidate and a better president,” Christie recounted in a new digital ad rolled out Thursday.
“Well, I was wrong, I made a mistake.”
Beyond merely endorsing Trump, Christie actively campaigned for the now-77-year-old, frequently defended him amid various controversies, and jockeyed to be either his vice president or attorney general.
During both the 2016 and 2020 campaigns, Christie helped prep Trump for debates against Democrats Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden.
But now, the New Jerseyan has rebranded himself as a reformed critic of the 45th president, frequently accusing his opponents of lacking the courage to mount attacks against the most popular figure in the Republican Party.
The Christie campaign has announced a seven-figure ad buy to blanket the airwaves in New Hampshire ahead of the Jan. 23 primary, tapping into a war chest that it has been saving for some time.
Christie has banked heavily on the Granite State, where he is polling in third place, according to the latest RealClearPolitics aggregate.
Over recent weeks, he has stepped up his verbal salvos against former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who has notched the endorsement of popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu and who polls show to be a clear second place behind Trump in New Hampshire.
Christie has also resisted a chorus of calls from anti-Trump Republicans to drop out and clear a lane for Haley.
“Some people say I should drop out of this race. Really?” the former governor said in another recent spot.
“I’m the only one saying Donald Trump is a liar.”