Chris Christie is the most interesting person in the GOP right now. This is why | Kelly

Something remarkable is taking place in the Republican Party presidential sweepstakes.

No, this unexpected turn in the political wind does not involve Donald Trump’s alleged crimes. Or former Vice President Mike Pence’s newfound semi-courage to actually speak about the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Or Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ rhetorically constipated efforts to semi-concede that Joe Biden actually won the presidential election in 2020.

This is about former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

It needs to be said here that as the Republican presidential primary field gears up for its first debate on Aug. 23 in Milwaukee, Christie has emerged as his old rational, commonsensical New Jersey self.

Who knew, right?

Christie’s mix of plain talk and no-nonsense government catapulted him to election as governor in 2009 — a Republican winning handily in a so-called “blue” state. Soon after, the national GOP proclaimed Christie as a key contender for the Republican nomination for president in the 2012 race.

Christie passed on running for the White House in 2012. But with a bipartisan coalition that pushed him to a landslide gubernatorial reelection in 2013, Christie was quickly anointed as the GOP’s presidential nominee for 2016. At one point, in late 2013, Christie even led Democrat Hillary Clinton in presidential polling.

Bridgegate, Trump and COVID-19

We all know what happened.

It wasn’t pretty.

With his star rising after he set up shop in the Statehouse in Trenton, Christie fell in love with his tough-guy image. He pushed aside the rational, reasonable side that he displayed often as a successful federal prosecutor and transformed his plain-talk personality into something akin to that of the whooped-up, brash, temperamental announcer at "Wrestlemania."

He mocked teachers and state legislators — and just about everyone in between. If you challenged Christie — at say, a press conference — you could expect a verbal beat-down. The video of Christie holding an ice cream cone and chasing a critic down a Jersey Shore boardwalk went viral.

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Then came the Bridgegate scandal. Then the train-wreck of Christie’s 2016 presidential campaign that seemed to have no soul. Christie was no longer a go-to GOP leader. He was a laugh line on late-night TV. Then, the photograph of Christie lounging on a beach in a state park that he closed to the public as part of a government shutdown. Christie seemed clueless, out of touch.

As a political coup de grace, Christie’s once towering approval rating fell into the same territory that New Jersey Democratic Gov. Jim Florio once inhabited. Christie left Trenton as the most unpopular governor in the history of New Jersey, with the possible exception of William Franklin, the son of Founding Father Benjamin Franklin who was arrested for treason during the American Revolution because of his staunch loyalty to Britain’s king.

As if that weren’t bad enough, Christie then jumped into the Good Ship Trump, pandering to the newly elected president.

Christie tried to position himself for a top job in the administration. But in the end, he went nowhere. In fact, Trump seemed to go out of his way to regularly humiliate Christie.

Christie said it's "undeniable" Trump himself infected him with the COVID-19 virus when Christie went to the White House to help Trump prepare for a presidential debate in the 2020 campaign against Joe Biden. Trump did not tell Christie — or other GOP luminaries who showed up for the debate prep — that he had tested positive for the coronavirus. For his service, Christie spent nearly a week in a hospital intensive care unit.

Has Chris Christie evolved?

This columnist has harshly criticized Christie for years. But it’s worth saying now that the man has — gulp — grown. The arrogance is gone or has been banished to a corner of his psyche. He’s different — and that’s notable.

The change began with Christie not only announcing his presidential campaign, but, unlike the other GOP candidates, he harshly criticized Trump.

Two weeks ago, Christie accepted an invitation to be interviewed by the unabashedly progressive, overwhelmingly woke Democratic podcast, “Pod Save America.” His interviewer, Jon Lovett, a former staffer in the Obama White House, slammed into Christie, even making fun of his weight and his decision to suddenly target Trump after so many years of unabashed support.

But Christie held his own. Perhaps most important, Christie did not lose his temper. In the end, Lovett even praised him.

The "Pod Save America" interview will not register as a significant moment in American political history. It's not even a footnote. But it nonetheless offered a refreshing break in an all-too-rigid political season. It also underscores how Christie is not afraid to carry his campaign into unsafe territory.

A week later, Christie jumped on a plane and flew to Ukraine. He sat down for a talk with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and placed flowers on the graves of Ukrainian civilians killed by Russian soldiers. Christie was also not shy about pledging his support for Ukraine’s war against Russia — something other GOP candidates, including Trump, have danced around. Christie even gave Zelenskyy a note from Jersey rocker Jon Bon Jovi with Bon Jovi’s handwritten lyrics to one of his iconic songs, “It’s My Life.”

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Christie on Trump: 'Self-centered, self-possessed, self-consumed'

Perhaps Christie’s most notable accomplishment, however, is his continued criticism of Trump — criticism that has increased dramatically as Trump’s legal problems grew last week with yet another federal indictment charging him with attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

“Trump is a completely self-centered, self-possessed, self-consumed, angry old man,” Christie said recently. “He doesn't care about anybody else other than himself.”

That sort of comment is common now from Christie. And it has prompted some Republicans — notably Mike Pence — to step up their own criticism of Trump. But as Trump’s legal problems continue to grow, the news shows don’t turn to DeSantis or Pence or Nikki Haley for a reaction. Increasingly, they turn to Christie.

What’s important here is that Christie is not simply tossing rhetorical bombs in Trump’s direction. He’s embraced the style of a prosecutor, breaking down Trump’s indictments in ways that are not just insightful but helpful to voters.

Christie’s poll numbers are not rising all that much. Neither are other GOP candidates', for that matter. For now, it appears that Trump has a stranglehold on the GOP nomination.

But Trump will have Christie at his heels — for a while, anyway. And in two weeks, when Republican presidential candidates — including Christie — gather in Milwaukee for their first debate, the main question is whether Trump will show up.

Trump is already asking crowds at his rallies whether he should go. Meanwhile, Christie has thrown down his own verbal gauntlet.

“If Trump doesn’t show up for the debates, he’s a coward,” Christie said this week. “Either way, I’ll be there.”

Imagine that: Chris Christie, the rational candidate.

This is must-see TV.

Mike Kelly is an award-winning columnist for NorthJersey.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, as well as the author of three critically acclaimed non-fiction books and a podcast and documentary film producer. To get unlimited access to his insightful thoughts on how we live life in the Northeast, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kellym@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Chris Christie: GOP candidate continues to swat at Trump