Christie locks down much-needed NH endorsement​

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s struggling GOP presidential campaign just got a much-needed bump, locking down the coveted New Hampshire Union Leader endorsement.

In a Sunday editorial, publisher Joe McQuaid praised Christie as a “solid, pro-life conservative who has managed to govern in liberal New Jersey, face down the big public unions, and win a second term.”

“Gov. Christie can work across the aisle, but he won’t get rolled by the bureaucrats,” McQuaid wrote.

The paper’s endorsement, which has historically boosted Republican candidates in the polls, not-so-subtly jabbed Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rand Paul (R- Ky.) for their lack of experience.

“We don’t need another fast-talking, well-meaning freshman U.S. senator trying to run the government. We are still seeing the disastrous effects of the last such choice.”  

The editorial also notably shot at real estate mogul Donald Trump, who is leading the polls nationally and in the Granite State.

“Other candidates have gained public and media attention by speaking bluntly. But it’s important when you are telling it like it is to actually know what you are talking about.”

Trump has had a rocky relationship with McQuaid and the newspaper since it published a scathing editorial in July after Trump accused Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) of not being a war hero. Trump then dropped out of the Union Leader’s presidential candidate forum in early August, becoming the only Republican candidate not to participate.

The endorsement comes at a pivotal time for Christie, who has been struggling to break out in a crowded Republican field and did not make the main debate stage at the last Republican presidential debate. Christie has put his eggs in the New Hampshire basket, with 113 stops in the Granite State to date — surpassed only by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), with 163 stops.

Backing from the influential New Hampshire newspaper is a critical step for any Republican contender in the first-in-the-nation presidential primary. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.) took the endorsement in 2012 and saw a subsequent bump in the polls. In 2008, the Union Leader also endorsed McCain, who ultimately received the nomination.

Joe McQuaid will join NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday to discuss the paper’s endorsement.