Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie compared former President Donald Trump to the Harry Potter villain Voldemort in his 2024 presidential campaign announcement speech.
Speaking to a crowd in New Hampshire, Christie decided to broach in his announcement speech a topic his Republican competitors generally avoid: Trump. Christie bashed his Republican competitors' treatment of Trump, saying he was like the main antagonist of the hit series Harry Potter.
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Christie began by making veiled attacks on Trump, bashing his practice of attacking former aides who fell out of favor. He described the behavior as something you don't want in a leader.
"And if you decide that the people who asked to come with you to lead will always be the ones who are blamed when anything goes wrong," Christie began. "That they'll be called names, that they'll be dismissed. And then, after they leave your service, they're nothing but idiots. Beware because that leader not only will not serve you, they will not be able to find anybody who will serve them. And a lonely, self-consumed, self-serving mirror hog is not a leader."
The former New Jersey governor then went on to reference Trump directly, using a Harry Potter reference to introduce him.
"So now we have pretenders all around us who want to tell you 'pick me' cause 'I'm kind of like what you pick before, but not quite as crazy,'" he added.
"But I don't want to say his name. ... He is, for those of you who read the Harry Potter books, like Voldemort," Christie said. "He is 'He Who Shall Not Be Named.'"
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"Well, let me be clear, in case I have not been clear already," Christie continued. "The person I am talking about, who is obsessed with a mirror, who never admits a mistake, who never admits fault, who always finds someone else and something else to blame for whatever goes wrong but finds every reason to take credit for anything that goes right is Donald Trump. And if we don't have that conversation with you, we don't deserve to ask for your vote."
The latest Fox News poll, taken from May 19-22, has Christie polling at 0%. Trump holds 53%.