During a discussion on the MSNBC program “Morning Joe” this Thursday, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, a candidate in the GOP presidential primary, harshly criticized the idea of pardoning former President Donald Trump. Such an act would only cover some of the charges that the former president faces anyway, since two of the four cases are on the state level, while the potential pardon discussed by some would be presidential.
Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessman who has become one of the leading second-tier candidates in the GOP primary, is loudly in favor of pardoning Trump. Both Ramaswamy and Christie appeared onstage in Milwaukee on Wednesday for the first debate in the GOP presidential primary, though Trump — the continued front-runner in that contest — was absent. “There’s no reason to show mercy on Donald Trump when he doesn’t even want to admit that anything he did was wrong,” Christie remarked.
Christie also discussed during the interview his perspective on the hesitance from some of his fellow contenders around actually condemning Trump, against whom they’re ostensibly running. Christie suggested some of those in the race were hoping to later take on a top role in a future Trump administration, though plenty of polling measuring a potential rematch in 2024 between Trump and Biden shows the Republican losing nationally, making that defeat a clear possibility. Though Trump continues to hold the majority’s support in the GOP primary race, he’s faring much less well among Americans in general, many of whom believe he should just drop out altogether after facing charges. Half of Americans backed that idea in a recent poll from ABC News and Ipsos done after the Georgia indictment.
Trump will be surrendering in Georgia on Thursday for processing after what was his overall fourth indictment, which alleges a criminal conspiracy targeting the state’s election results from 2020. A total of 19 defendants were criminally charged. Trump’s bond is set at $200,000, and he is formally under restrictions on making certain threatening comments — including in the form of reposts on social media — related to the Georgia case.
