Nikki Haley issued a statement shortly after Chris Christie withdrew from the race for the Republican presidential nomination on Wednesday, saying he has been "a friend for many years" and praising him for running "a hard-fought campaign." She politely didn't mention the prediction that her rival—up till that moment—had just made about her political future, the New York Times reports. "She's gonna get smoked, and you and I both know it," a hot mic caught Christie saying, though he didn't use her name. "She's not up to this."
Others in the GOP race did not decline to comment on the matter. Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social account that Christie had made "a very truthful statement." Ron Desantis posted on X, "I agree with Christie that Nikki Haley is 'going to get smoked.'" Christie had spoken on the phone to DeSantis after the announcement, and that led to another hot mic moment on the livestream during a town hall event in Windham, New Hampshire. The former New Jersey governor was heard saying that DeSantis had called him, "petrified," per Politico. It wasn't clear what DeSantis might have been worried about. The audio from the event was then turned off, per Axios.
Christie's supporters in New Hampshire were disappointed by his decision, per the Times. Tom Barton said he won't switch his support to another Republican and echoed a frequent criticism of the field his pick has made. "They don't have the courage to tell the truth about Trump," Barton said. Toni Pappas praised Christie, saying, "I think he did something very noble and patriotic." (More Chris Christie 2024 stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
