GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie said he would not issue a pardon for former President Trump if he were elected president in 2024 and if Trump were convicted of a crime.
In an interview on “The View” on Wednesday, the former New Jersey governor did not hesitate to say “no” when co-host Joy Behar pointed out that GOP presidential candidates Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis said they would pardon Trump and asked whether Christie would do the same.
“No, no, no, no,” Christie said, before Behar finished asking the question.
He drew on his experience as governor in explaining his reasoning.
Christie isn’t going to win the primary, but he’s providing a valuable service. His willingness to go in front of a MAGA dominated Republican audience and not just call out Trump but to even confront the audience itself, is exactly the kind of thing we need more of. Most other Republican figures who oppose Trump either do so quietly or on their way out.
This is somewhat helpful in the short term because there are plenty of Trump supporters who aren’t fully committed fascists, they’re just right leaning and living in a Fox News / talk radio media bubble, to the extent that they are even paying attention at all. Those people won’t be reached from outside their bubble, but someone on the inside talking some sense might just be able to get through to them.
That alone will do little to stop Trump. But if Trump loses again, and brings enough baggage to harm the party again, then there will be a lot of influential people looking to course correct and the conversations will be shaped by their perceptions of the situation. If the MAGA wing of the party is going to be beaten, it will be a long term struggle, and the fight will have to happen within the Republican party. Having people who are still on the inside saying “maybe we shouldn’t nominate criminals who attack democracy and the rule of law, and put loyalty to MAGA over the good of both the country and the party” is a good thing.