What Makes Jersey Run: Christie talks Trump, gov race — even running for prez again

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the sixth edition of a new weekly newsletter on the crazy world of New Jersey politics. You can subscribe here.

Chris Christie still has a lot to say

Chris Christie hasn’t ruled out running for president again. At least that’s what he told me.

“Never say never,” the former New Jersey governor and two-time Republican White House hopeful said Tuesday in a brief one-on-one chat after a public appearance at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Christie was the latest guest in a political speaker series at the Madison school, put together by business leader Ruthi Byrne, the widow of former Gov. Brendan Byrne. And if you closed your eyes, you might have thought it was still 2012, the way Christie commanded the room.

Of course, a ton has changed since Christie’s heyday here, when his brash brand of politics dominated the state. Not only Bridgegate and plummeting poll numbers but two unsuccessful presidential bids, the most recent an attempt to stop his friend turned foe, Donald Trump, from returning to the Oval Office.

We’re now two months into now-President Trump’s second term. And Tuesday’s event came just days after Trump announced Alina Habba, his former attorney, as his controversial pick to serve as Jersey’s interim U.S. attorney, the post that catapulted Christie to fame.

Christie had plenty to say about that. And many other topics. Here’s a sampling ...

On whether he fears retribution from Trump world: “It worries my family more than it worries me. ... I’m not I’m saying I’m not worried about it. I’m saying I’m resigned to it. And I wouldn’t change anything that I did.”

On Habba’s new job: “Everyone should know that this is an appointment for 120 days. That’s all the president can do unless she’s nominated and confirmed. … I think it would be unlikely she’d be confirmed even in a Republican Senate because our two Democratic senators have courtesy ... She walked out of the White House the first time, her first words were attacking Cory Booker. That might not have been the smoothest way."

On Trump setting his sights on Canada and Greenland: “I believe that the way the Trump administration is running certain parts of our foreign policy is going to be really damaging to the country long term. ... Who’s ever met a Canadian you didn’t like?”

On the recently convicted ex-Sen. Robert Menendez: “This is a guy who went to trial, wasn’t acquitted, got a mistrial, went out on the steps of the courthouse and said: ‘I know all of you out there who’ve been prematurely digging my political grave, I have your names, and I won’t forget.’ There’s someone who saw God, right? … Bob Menendez is a bad guy. He always was a bad guy."

On Charles Kushner, the Jersey Democratic donor (and father of Trump’s son-in-law) whom Christie once prosecuted — before Trump pardoned him and named him ambassador to France: Christie was asked if he’d confirm Kushner for the ambassadorship if he were a member of the Senate. “I would vote no on Charles Kushner because he’s one of the five most loathsome and reprehensible people I’ve ever met in my life.”

On his Democratic successor, Gov. Phil Murphy: Christie told a story about how he met a resident at a 7-Eleven in Morristown a few years ago who pleaded with him to fix NJ Transit. Christie told him he wasn’t governor any more. “And he said: ‘You’re not? … Who is?‘” Christie told him Phil Murphy was. “He said: ‘He won?’ I said: ‘Twice.’ … I think that that feeling that the state is not in a good direction and that there’s no one at the helm lowers confidence in the Democrats.” Murphy has long argued Christie left the state in a “mess” that Democrats are digging out of. Christie, in contrast, said he is “deeply disturbed” by Murphy’s seven years when it comes to regulation, taxes, and spending.

On whether Republicans over-performed in the 2021 governor’s race, in which Republican Jack Ciattarelli came within 3 points of ousting Murphy: “I’d argue they didn’t over-perform. I would argue they under-performed because we should have won that race. ... Our losing gubernatorial candidate toured around the state as if he was Caesar. ... Well, you know, I beat Jon Corzine by almost the same amount in 2009, and no one called that a close race.” Worth noting: Christie and Ciattarelli — who is running for governor again this year — have often clashed.

On why Trump over-performed in Jersey last fall, coming within 6 points in the blue state: “I don’t think it was really a referendum on Trump. I think it was a referendum on (Kamala) Harris. And (Democrats) said: ‘I just can’t do it. I can’t vote for her.‘”

On how Trump could affect the governor’s race on Election Day: Christie noted Trump’s poll numbers have started to drop. “I think that trend will continue. And in New Jersey, the key for a Republican to the gubernatorial race is independents. … If those independents have become disenchanted with what’s happening in Washington under Donald Trump, that will put a significant headwind onto Republicans."

On the Republican candidates this year to succeed Murphy as governor: Christie said former state Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli is the “current frontrunner” given this is his third gubernatorial bid. He said Bill Spadea is a “very different character than we’ve had run for governor on the Republican side before ... a former radio host kind of a populist in the Trump mold a bit.” Christie said he has a “great working relationship” with state Sen. Jon Bramnick but Trump may determine the outcome of the primary if he endorses someone — and it won’t be Bramnick.

On the effect of a possible Trump endorsement in the GOP primary: “If (Trump) doesn’t get in, I think Ciattarelli wins. If he gets in for Ciattarelli, he wins by a lot. If he gets in for Spadea, I think Spadea wins. ... Every night, I can guarantee you Jack Ciattarelli and Bill Spadea, before they go to bed, are on their knees next to their bed saying, ‘Jesus, Jesus, please let it be me.‘”

On the Democratic gubernatorial contenders: Christie said Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and New Jersey Education Association President Sean Spiller are “not credible candidates” and won’t win. He said former state Senate President Steve Sweeney “knows how to work things” but will have a tough time outside his South Jersey home base. Christie said Newark Mayor Ras Baraka is the race’s “most underrated” candidate and could win over liberal voters. He said Rep. Mikie Sherrill “should be perceived as the frontrunner” but speaks too much like a member of Congress. He said Rep. Josh Gottheimer “does not have that problem” but is “running a general-election campaign in the primary.” Christie’s conclusion: the Democratic nod will “likely” go to either Sherrill or Gottheimer.

At the end of the evening, I spent a few minutes chatting with Christie:

Q: We’re now two months into a Trump presidency you warned everyone about. What do you make of it?

Christie: "Exactly what I expected. … He’s gotten some things right. On the immigration stuff, he’s generally been right and he’s executed that well. But on the majority of the rest of the stuff, I think it’s been more talk than do and we’ll see what results from that."

Q: Would you have advised Trump against nominating Alina Habba?

Christie: "Given it’s my old office, I’m not going to get into it. … I think it’s inappropriate for me to talk about somebody who hasn’t done the job yet. … She deserves a chance to do it. And if I would have advised him differently, that would have been between me and him."

Q: Are you going to endorse in the governor’s race?

Christie: "I haven’t decided yet."

Q: Would you ever run for president again?

Christie: “Never say never. Depends on what happens. I’m certainly young enough given the way this job has gotten older. So at 62, I feel pretty young.”

Q: The state constitution limits governors only to serving two non-consecutive terms. Would you ever consider running for governor a third time?

Christie: “No, no. I think two terms as governor is enough. I think it’s the right way to go. And for you to come back and do something like that, it makes it more about you. There should be others who have the chance to lead.”

Q: You’re now a board member of my beloved New York Mets. How does that compare to your life in politics?

Christie: “It’s just like a dream come true, right? Like, I mean, I’ve been a Met fan since I was 7 years old. So 55 years as a Met fan and to be on the board now and have an influence on what the team does and be able to be with them. I was in the locker room for the celebration at Citi Field (in the playoffs last year). My first-ever champagne celebration. That was pretty cool."

Q: Your friend and Mets owner Steve Cohen has been critical of Trump so far. Is that you getting in his ear?

Christie: “Steve’s an independent thinker on that stuff, for sure. We compare notes, but he’s an independent thinker on that.”

Hot takes

• A couple of colleagues asked me Monday: Where is Cory Booker these days? The same question was also a topic on NJ PBS’s “Reporters Roundtable” last week. Well, the whole country just got an answer. Jersey’s senior U.S. senator delivered a record-setting 25-hour speech on the Senate floor as part of a protest against Trump this week, saying “these are not normal times.” Booker smashed the mark for longest Senate speech, held for 68 years by Republican South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond, who filibustered against the Civil Rights Act for 24 hours in 1957. Booker, Jersey’s first Black U.S. senator, said after his marathon that Thurmond’s record “really irked me.” Now, Booker is being held up as the kind of Democratic folk hero party members have been pleading for to counter Trump. Republicans dismissed it as a stunt. But one top Democrat told me the speech made Booker “a leading voice for the party.” The immediate speculation: This was the start of a second Booker-for-president campaign. One Democratic operative, though, cautioned 2028 will be a “free-for-all” and Booker will now need to “go non-stop for four years.” (And for the many of you wondering whether Booker was able to pee during the speech, he told reporters he didn’t need to because he hadn’t eaten since Friday or drank water since Sunday.)
• Speaking of speculation, there have been rumors galore that state Attorney General Matthew Platkin has his eye on elected office. That, his critics contend, is the reason behind his barrel of lawsuits against Trump and his (failed) indictment of Democratic powerbroker George Norcross. One thought is he’s gunning to run for Rep. Mikie Sherrill's U.S. House seat if she’s elected governor. But Platkin denies it. “I assure you I’m not running for Congress,” he recently told me. “I am focused on job I have, which I think is the greatest job I ever will have, at a time when it’s never been more important. And, you know, I’m going to do this job right up until the last day and fight for the people of the state.” But does he see ever himself running for elected office? “I have no intention,” he insisted. (I’ll have more on my chat with Platkin in the coming weeks.)
• Elon Musk has increasingly been a boogeyman in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. Exhibit A: Sherrill recently ramped up her attacks on Trump and Musk — which in turn ramped up attention on the $31,500 she received from the political fundraising arm of Musk’s Space X company, money she ultimately donated to a food bank after the backlash. To that end, a source recently pointed out that two other Democratic contenders, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, have paid money to amplify their posts on Musk’s X social media platform. That’s not uncommon in campaigns and it’s likely a nominal amount. But I asked Fulop and Baraka’s teams about it considering the Musk connection. Fulop’s camp said they have spent $200 total on X advertising. “Unlike Sherrill that took tens of thousands of dollars in direct donations from Elon Musk’s companies and refused to return them until she was shamed months later, the Fulop campaign has taken zero donations from Musk,” they added. “The Fulop campaign will continue to advertise progressive messages on every single social media platform where voters consume information.” Baraka spokesman Kabir Moss said: “We have to meet voters where they are.”
• Candidates typically announce their running mates, you know, after actually winning their party’s nomination. Not Steve Fulop, who continued his convention-bucking campaign by introducing his pick for lieutenant governor — South Orange Mayor Sheena Collum — two months before the primary. Collum, a 41-year-old progressive Democrat, called Fulop a “fellow nerd” on policy and became likely the first person in history to say housing reform is “my jam.” Like Fulop, she also didn’t shy from tweaking opponents. South Orange is in Sherrill’s congressional district, and Collum said she respects her. She also said Sherrill “belongs in Congress” to keep up the fight against Trump instead of running for governor back home.
• Let’s check in on the Trump-infused street fight also known as the Republican gubernatorial primary. First, the New Jersey Globe reported Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law, was set to appear at a fundraiser for a pro-Bill Spadea super PAC. Then, Mediate reported she pulled out because she’s now a Fox News host and the media giant doesn’t allow talent to attend campaign events. Spadea’s camp declined comment, though supporters say Lara Trump simply was hamstrung. One GOP insider told me Lara Trump didn’t know of Spadea’s past critical comments about the president and was “happy she had a conflict.” So where does this leave us in the behind-the-scenes battle between Spadea and Jack Ciattarelli for Trump’s support? Nothing new, I’m told. Meanwhile, a judge allowed former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac to stay on the ballot in the Republican gubernatorial primary after Spadea challenged his petition signatures.
• State Sen. Jon Bramnick has a unique lane in the GOP primary: He’s a moderate willing to criticize Trump. While that would give him a leg up in the general election, it’s a liability in the primary. But Bramnick has been sending out mailers on another topic critical to those voters: immigration. He touts his “conservative record” on the issue and promises to end Gov. Murphy’s sanctuary policies. “I make it simple: Being a moderate means sometimes you’re conservative and sometimes you’re not,” Bramnick told me. One Republican insider told me it could give Bramnick a boost considering many voters may not even know of his anti-Trump remarks.
• Another thing to watch: Republicans continue to make gains in voter registration in the state.
• Democrats are already gearing up for next year’s mid-term elections, with Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. firmly in their crosshairs. This week, a Democrat running for Kean’s seat, Rebecca Bennett, turned heads when she raised $425,000 in the first two months of her first-ever campaign. There will likely be other Dems running, but Bennett already has a nickname in political circles: “Mini Mikie.” That’s a nod to Mikie Sherrill, a fellow former Navy pilot, who managed to turn a red seat blue seven years ago. “There are worse things to be called,” one insider said.
• My longtime editor, mentor, and fellow baseball fan Tom Martello just debuted his new column on Jersey politics. You’ll want to read him. He has years of experience covering this crazy state.
• A very happy 4th birthday to my exuberant daughter Everly, who is wonderful ...

What others are saying

Some Jersey stories in the news:

• My colleague Steven Rodas dove into hot political topic: the big utility bill hike set to hit Jerseyans.
• State officials are sounding alarms about New Jersey’s financial picture as state budget hearings heat up, as reported by my colleagues Susan K. Livio and Jelani Gibson. Lawmakers are also concerned about Murphy’s proposed tax hikes.
• Another colleague, Ted Sherman, reported on how a former top state health official reached a $2.25 million settlement with the state to resolve a years-long legal battle over his charges that he was illegally fired at the height of the pandemic.
• NorthJersey.com’s Charles Stile explored whether Rep. Mikie Sherrill really is the frontrunner for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination or whether that’s a mirage.
• Politico’s Madison Fernandez examined how MAGA celebrity and conservative activist Scott Pressler is trying to help paint Jersey red.
• There was a new ad in the governor’s contest this week from an outside group calling on Republican Jewish voters to temporarily switch parties to back Rep. Josh Gottheimer in the Democratic primary, calling him the race’s “least not bad guy,” as reported by the New Jersey Monitor.
• And finally, my very good friend and colleague Jeremy Schneider just launched a new podcast for NJ.com: “Jersey’s Best.” It’s all about the best state in the land ...

Tweet of the week

Did you know?

Last week, we noted Grover Cleveland is the only president both born in New Jersey and buried in New Jersey. But he’s not the only president to die here. The other is James Garfield. The 20th president wasn’t a Jerseyan and his grave is in his native Ohio. Still, Garfield spent spent his final days in Long Branch in September 1881, soon after being struck by an assassin’s bullet.

He was shot by Charles J. Guiteau at a Washington, D.C., train station, and historians say the 49-year-old likely would have survived today. But the president’s doctors tried to pull the bullet out with unsterilized fingers and instruments. A few months later, an ailing Garfield was taken to the Shore, with hopes the sea might help him heal. He stayed at Francklyn Cottage, an estate in Long Branch’s Elberon section, but died within weeks.

One more note: If you’ve never checked out Stephen Sondheim's musical “Assassins” — all about the people who killed or failed to kill American presidents — I can’t recommend it more. Here’s the number about Garfield’s killer.

About this newsletter

Welcome to What Makes Jersey Run, a weekly newsletter for anyone interested in the always-lively world of Jersey politics and America’s most important governor’s race in 2025. Join NJ.com’s award-winning political reporter Brent Johnson as he gives you the inside look at what really happens behind the scenes in a state rife with scandal, controversy, and power players (some of whom wind up in jail). Brent, who has been covering the craziness in Trenton for more than a decade and knows who pulls the strings, will deliver his exclusive insights on the state of politics and the big campaign right to your inbox.

About the author

Brent Johnson is a Central Jersey (yes, it’s real) native who has spent the last 12 years covering politics for NJ.com, winning multiple journalism awards along the way. Before that, he covered local news and sports, including a stint writing about James Madison University athletics in Virginia. He graduated from Rutgers University and sings in a Jersey alt-rock band, The Clydes.

Here’s a bit more about him. You can follow him on X at @johnsb01 and email him at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.