Christie says Trump wishes ‘he could be Putin in America’

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said former President Trump “admires strongmen” and wishes he could be “Putin in America” in an interview with the Financial Times published Friday.

“He’d give Ukraine to the Russians. He wouldn’t care less,” Christie said in the FT interview.

“Trump is someone who believes: fill the moat, pull up the drawbridge,” he added.

A frequent admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump has often called the authoritarian leader “strong” and a “friend.”

Trump has been openly critical of the Biden administration’s actions in Ukraine, and he has claimed he could finish the war in Ukraine in 24 hours. The former president reiterated in a Thursday interview that he believes Ukraine would likely have to give up land to “force peace” in the war.

“I think we see a pretty consistent pattern of him wishing he was a dictator, wishing he could be Putin in America. That’s what’s dark to me about it. That’s what he really wants. He wants to be a dictator,” Christie said.

Christie and Trump, presidential candidates and one-time allies, have been feuding since well before the former New Jersey governor officially entered the race in early June. In the weeks since, no other GOP candidate has been nearly as vocal or consistent a critic of the former president as Christie.

The former president’s praise for Putin, however, is one area that has also received criticism from fellow GOP primary opponents, including his former Vice President Mike Pence.

Trump and Christie have traded barbs in recent weeks over their weight and financial troubles. Christie told the Financial Times that taking down Trump is one of the main goals of his candidacy.

“The worst thing to happen to me is I lose,” Christie said. “I’ve done that before and the sun came up the next day. The thing that would keep me up at night is that I let [Trump’s return] happen without trying to stop it.”

Recent polling averages show Christie far behind the front-running Trump in the GOP primary race, with Christie receiving about 3 percent support, on average.