Christie says second Trump term will be ‘vendetta presidency’

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) is sounding the alarm, claiming a second term for former President Trump would create a “huge personnel problem” in the White House.

“​One, it’ll be a huge personnel problem of people who have no business being in senior positions in the federal government,” Christie told ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos in a recent interview. “​And then secondly, I think we have to take him at his word.”

“This is gonna be the vendetta presidency,” he added.

Segments of the interview, which comes on the release of Christie’s third book — “What Would Reagan Do?” — will air Tuesday on ABC News and “Good Morning America.”

Christie, who suspended his own bid for the White House in January, told Stephanopoulos that his previous support for Trump was a “mistake.”

While he hasn’t officially endorsed a candidate in the race, Christie has been an outspoken critic of the former president since he jumped into the race last June. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who is Trump’s only major remaining challenger in the primary race, said last month that she didn’t want or need his endorsement.

The former governor, who also sought the Republican nomination in 2016, led the former president’s transition team before he took office in 2017. In Tuesday’s interview, he said Trump didn’t expect to win the election and was intimidated by the presidency, which led to him to bring experienced people into the administration.

“Whether you agree with their policies, these are really solid, experienced people in government,” he said, but predicted that a second Trump administration would be “mayhem, absolute mayhem.”

“​I cannot imagine the crew that he’ll put together,” he said.

Trump’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment on Christie’s remarks.

The former president remains the clear GOP front-runner, and with wide leads in the polls, a rematch between Trump and President Biden in November is becoming increasingly likely.

Christie openly admitted that his bid for the 2024 presidential nomination was driven by preventing a second Trump term.

Trump has also frequently lashed out at Christie, even making fun of his weight.

The former president previously indicated that a second term would allow him to strike back at his enemies, but more recently has backed off from that rhetoric.

“We’re going to make the country so successful again, I’m not going to have time for retribution,” Trump said during an event in Iowa last month. “And remember this: Our ultimate retribution is success.”