Trump town hall highlights: He mocks Christie's exit, downplays 'retribution' in a 2nd term

Former President Donald Trump mocked Chris Christie's exit from the 2024 race and waved away concerns that his second administration would focus on "retribution" during a Fox News town hall in Des Moines on Wednesday evening.

With the Iowa Caucuses just five days away, Trump answered questions from Iowans and Fox anchors Bret Baier and Martha McCallum at the downtown Iowa Events Center. Just miles away at Drake University, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sparred in a two-person debate of their own, hosted by CNN.

Trump: 'Nobody cared too much' about Christie dropping out

"Nobody cared too much about that," Trump said of Christie's dropping out of the race earlier Wednesday. But he pointed to an exchange caught on a hot microphone in which Christie appeared to be saying that Haley would "get smoked" in the race.

"I know her very well, and I happen to believe that Chris Christie is right," Trump said of Haley, who served as ambassador during his administration. "One of the few things he's been right about."

Trump has maintained wide leads in polling in Iowa and nationally over all his competitors for the Republican nomination. In a December Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll, 51% of likely Republican caucusgoers named Trump as their first choice for president. DeSantis was the first choice of 19% and Haley 16%. Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who has campaigned heavily in Iowa, was in a distant fourth place at 5%, and Christie, who has focused on New Hampshire and not campaigned in Iowa, was at 4%.

When Trump was asked later if he would be willing to mend bridges with his primary opponents, he said, "Oh, sure, I will."

"I've already started to invite Christie back," he said, spurring laughs from the crowd.

Jason Miller, a senior campaign advisor to Trump, called the DeSantis and Haley faceoff the "junior varsity loser's bracket debate" in comments to reporters.

Takeaways: Attack Haley, DeSantis, and Biden - and tease the vice presidency

Trump: 'I won't have time for retribution'

The former president throughout his campaign has been explicit about his intention to pursue revenge against his political opponents, telling supporters that "I am your retribution." But asked by Baier in the town hall how much of a second Trump term would be spent dwelling on past battles, he took a less blunt stance.

"A lot of people would say that's not so bad," Trump said, ticking through political and legal battles facing him before dismissing the idea that they would dominate his presidency.

"We're going to have a success that's so great that I won't have time for retribution," he said. "There won't be retribution; there will be success."

Recap: Review all the coverage of tonight's GOP debate, Trump event

Trump on VP: 'I know who it's going to be'

Asked about the process of selecting a vice presidential running mate, Trump said, "I know who it's going to be," but declined to provide any name.

Chris LaCivita and Miller, senior campaign advisers to Trump, told reporters after the town hall that he had spoken to close allies about what "qualities" he had been looking for in a candidate but had not explicitly discussed names. They declined to elaborate on those qualities.

"That's an issue that we really have not in any great detail discussed," LaCivita said. "I'm sure when that times comes, everybody will know who it is."

Trump, asked for clarity on abortion, defends his criticism of some on the issue

Rebecca, a mother of six from Ogden who was selected by Fox to ask Trump a question, pleaded for clarity from him on the issue of abortion.

She had been "vocal in celebrating" Trump, but his comments in recent months blaming key Republican election losses on the issue had caused her concern, she said. He has called a ban on abortion at six weeks of pregnancy, such as a law passed in Iowa, a "terrible thing."

"It's such an important question for me," she said.

"I understand where you're coming from," Trump told her. But he defended his criticism of some Republicans on the issue, saying that although "you would love them on the issue," some "have just been decimated in the election."

"We're going to come up with something that people want and people like," he said.

Inside the room: An informal caucus poll and commercial break callouts

Of the couple of hundred available seats, a few dozen remained empty toward the back. Outside, snow was again falling in downtown Des Moines, complemented by chilly temperatures.

An informal poll of the crowd conducted by the moderators before the town hall's start found that the vast majority of attendees were committed to caucus for Trump — several were volunteer "caucus captains" throughout the state.

A few dozen others were undecided or leaning toward one candidate or another. One attendee called on to ask Trump a question was committed to caucus for DeSantis; another demurred on first choice but indicated a toss-up between Trump and the Florida governor. The remainder of the questioners were supporting Trump.

During commercial breaks, supporters would stand from their seats and snap photos of Trump as he chatted with Baier and McCallum, occasionally shouting "thank you" and "we love you." At the conclusion of the town hall, Trump walked over to the crowd to shake hands and sign hats.

Galen Bacharier covers politics for the Register. Reach him at gbacharier@registermedia.com or (573) 219-7440, and follow him on Twitter @galenbacharier.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Trump town hall highlights: Mocks Christie, downplays 2nd term payback in Iowa