Anderson Cooper asked Chris Christie what he thought about Puddin' Fingers admitting Trump lost the 2020 election.
"I still don't think he answered it, right. He lost. Well, we all know that as a matter of law, he lost the election, right? The deeper question and the one that I think he's dodging is, do you believe it was a full and fair election? that's really the question. and with respect to the interviewer, and I think she let him off the hook. In the end, did he lose? Of course he lost. And i believe he lost because he lost in a full and fair election," Christie said.
"There's a lot of Republicans -- I think a majority of Republicans -- do not believe it was a free and fair election," Cooper said.
"I think that shows you the impact that Donald Trump has had on a lot of people. And that impact started on election night, Anderson. When he came out there that night at 2:30 in the morning and said, 'you know, we won the election, it's being stolen,' people assume that the president of the United States knows things they don't know.
"And if you're also inclined to be supportive, you want to give him the benefit of the doubt. And that stuff has just seeped in. He has said a number of times to me personally, and I've heard him say to others, you say something enough times, it becomes true. That is clearly his philosophy on everything he is doing right now to the American people," Christie said.
"I know in your book, you wrote about that moment being the key moment for you. We see the former president behaving, the rhetoric against the judge, and even Mike Pence. Is this just free speech or more?" Cooper asked.
"I think the judge will decide that ultimately. To me, though, there are limits on free speech. This is the classic, you can't yell fire in a crowded theater. There are limits on free speech. By the way, when you're a criminal defendant out on bail -- let's focus on that. He is now out on bail in three different jurisdictions, New York, Florida, and Washington, D.C. We have a frontrunner in this race who's out on bail in three jurisdictions.
"What happens, though, when you're let out is that there are restrictions placed on you for you to stay out. and one of the restrictions that was placed on him was no contact or intimidation of potential witnesses," Christie said.
"He's saying, if you go after me, I'm coming after you. His lawyers are saying that post was generalized political speech, not directed at anyone," Cooper said.
"Of course that's what they're going to say. What they feel like saying is, oh, my God, I can't believe he did that again. Privately, the lawyers want to jump out the window, having to defend some of this stuff. Here's the bottom line on it is that let's put aside if it's legal or illegal for a second. Is this the kind of conduct that the Republican party or the American people want for someone who's going to be president? To send out tweets or posts, whatever they are that he sends on Truth Social saying this kind of stuff, threatening people, trying to intimidate Mike Pence, trying to intimidate the judge," Christie said.
"You know, Mike Pence, as we know, he just falls in the line of Rex Tillerson and Jeff Sessions and Bill Barr and all these folks who were the best people ever when he hired them. And then as soon as they disagree with him, then they become the worst people on earth. The things he wrote about Mike Pence. Look, i'm running against Mike, I want to make sure I beat him and become the Republican nominee, but he doesn't deserve that."
