Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was caught on a hot mic Wednesday saying Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley is “going to get smoked,” minutes before announcing the suspension of his own 2024 White House bid.
“She’s not up to this,” Christie said in a livestream of his announcement in New Hampshire.
The former governor went on to say fellow GOP candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had called him, “petrified.”
DeSantis addressed the audio clip in a post Wednesday night on X, formerly Twitter, writing, “I agree with Christie that Nikki Haley is ‘going to get smoked.'”
In his Granite State speech, Christie described his reasons for leaving the race, while taking some farewell swipes at Haley and other candidates.
“Benjamin Franklin’s words were never more relevant in America than they are right now. The last time they were that relevant was the Civil War — which we know was caused by slavery,” Christie said, referencing Haley’s controversial comments last month about the cause of the Civil War.
Christie’s exit is expected to give Haley a boost, particularly in New Hampshire where Christie had staked his fate throughout his campaign.
Among the GOP field, Christie was an outspoken critic of frontrunner and former President Donald Trump, often disparaging Haley and others for not taking a similar approach. In Wednesday’s hot mic, he could be heard saying “people don’t want to hear it.”
“We know we’re right, but they don’t want to hear it,” Christie said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chris Christie caught on hot mic before dropping out of race
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