Gov. Christie: I am not a bully

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) insisted he is not a bully during a lengthy news conference on Thursday.

“I am not a focus group-tested, blow-dried candidate or governor,” he said. “I am who I am, but I am not a bully.”

{mosads}Christie made the comments during a lengthy press conference, where he announced the firing of a top staffer involved in the closing of two lanes on the George Washington Bridge in a possible act of retaliation against a Democratic mayor who refused to endorse Christie.

“There’s this reputation out there of me being a micromanager. I’m not,” he said.

The controversy over the George Washington Bridge is threatening to torpedo any hopes Christie has of running for the White House in 2016.

Democrats have latched on to the story, arguing it confirms perceptions that Christie is a bully more interested in his own career than the lives of his constituents.

Read more from The Hill.