Former NJ Gov. Chris Christie comes out attacking Donald Trump in second Republican debate

Seven presidential hopefuls took the stage Wednesday night for the second Republican Debate, including former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

The event featured seven candidates including Christie, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.

Notably absent again is former President Donald Trump who will instead be making a speech about labor at a non-union plant in Michigan. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson failed to qualify.

The second debate was held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in Simi Valley, California.

Christie appeared comfortable on the stage, leaning on his podium and spent much of the night on the attack. When asked about the possibility of a government shutdown, Christie didn’t spare either party.

"Voters should blame everybody who is in Washington DC. They get sent down there to do the job and they’ve been failing at doing the job for a very long time,” he said before pointing out that while the national debt has grown about $5 trillion during the Biden administration, it went up more than $7 trillion during the Trump administration as well.

He went on to say that lawmakers are “kicking the can down the road” and that “we don’t get any answers because Joe Biden hides in his basement and won’t answer as to why he raised the debt the way he’s done and Donald Trump hides behind the wall of his golf clubs and won’t show up here to answer questions like all the rest of us are up here.”

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The former governor was also asked about his stance on the path to citizenship and the way he flip-flopped from 2010 to 2016 and said that the issues at the southern border should be treated “like the law enforcement problem that it is.”

Christie went on to say that he would act like he did as governor and “enforce the law” and implement a “law and order agenda.”

He brought up his record as a U.S. Attorney when asked about crime in cities throughout the country and said that there is a need to enforce laws in not only cities but suburbs and rural areas as well.

Christie also said that while school choice is important something he would focus on would be reducing the power of the teacher’s union.

On the topic of foreign policy, Christie said that Iran, China and Russia are all connected and that the United States has to continue to help Ukraine.

Christie noted that several presidents, including Biden, Trump, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have tried to negotiate with Russia.

The former governor highlighted the fact that he vetoed funding for Planned Parenthood during his time as governor and said that the way to win over independent voters is to speak from the heart.

Focusing on Trump

Christie’s goal throughout the evening though seemed to be primarily to take shots at Trump as he repeatedly called the former president out by name, going so far as to address him directly while looking into the camera.

“I know you’re watching. You can’t help yourself,” Christie said. “You’re not here tonight, not because of polls and not because of your indictments. You’re not here tonight because you’re afraid of being on this stage and defending your record. You’re ducking these things and let me tell you what’s going to happen. You keep doing that. No one’s going to call you Donald Trump anymore. They’re going to call you Donald Duck.”

As the debate drew to a close and moderators tried to pull a gimmicky “vote someone off the island” bit, they resoundingly declined to play along but Christie was called out for starting to write a name. He made it clear who his choice would be – Trump.

“I vote Donald Trump off the island right now,” he said. “Every person on this stage has shown respect to Republican voters, to express their views honestly, candidly and directly and to take your questions honestly… This guy has not only divided our party. He’s divided families all over this country.”

Since declaring his candidacy in June, Christie has failed to surpass Trump in any polls though he continues to focus his attention on the front-runner.

In televised appearances, Christie has called Trump, his former friend, "angry" and "vengeful," saying the former president would spend a potential second term "settling scores" against enemies real and perceived.

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"He's shown himself to be completely self-centered, completely self-consumed," Christie said of Trump. "He doesn't give a damn about the American people."

Christie endorsed Trump in 2016 after shutting down his own campaign. He went on to help the former president prepare for debates and served for a time on his transition team.

Since leaving office, Christie has returned to his roots as a lawyer. He also has served as a political analyst and legal contributor for ABC News. He's worked as a lobbyist in Washington and has a seat on the board of directors for the New York Mets.

Before his time as governor, Christie was elected to the Morris County Board of Freeholders and served as U.S. attorney for New Jersey from 2002 to 2008.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Chris Christie comes out on attack in 2nd Republican debate