Posted on 12/14/2018 10:47:20 AM PST by yesthatjallen
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) declined the White House chief of staff role on Friday, making him the latest high-profile candidate who's no longer in the running for the influential post.
Christie and President Trump reportedly met Thursday evening to discuss the role of replacing John Kelly, who will be departing as chief of staff by the end of the year.
“It’s an honor to have the President consider me as he looks to choose a new White House chief-of-staff,” Christie wrote in a statement shared by Maggie Haberman of the New York Times on Friday. “However, I’ve told the President that now is not the right time for me or my family to undertake this serious assignment. As a result, I have asked not to be considered for this post.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump said Thursday that he was down to five finalists for the position, adding that the candidates were “mostly well known” and “terrific people.”
Earlier in the week, Trump's initial top pick for the job -- Nick Ayers, chief of staff to Vice President Pence -- turned down the offer.
Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), another candidate for the position, was out of the running a few days later after having a discussion with Trump, who told the outgoing Freedom Caucus chairman that he's needed in Congress to help defend the administration, according to a White House official.
Christie was one of Trump’s opponents during the GOP presidential primary in 2016. He later endorsed Trump after after dropping out.
He then served as an adviser during the campaign and headed up the transition team.
Former Trump campaign adviser David Bossie, acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker and Energy Secretary Rick Perry, are said to among those under consideration, according to multiple news reports.
Whoever is chosen will be Trump’s third chief of staff in less than two years. Reince Priebus left the post in summer 2017.
Who offered it to him?
I have a bridge to sell.
I would bet that the position was never offered.
Good.
Declining something he wasn’t picked for. And we knew we could not count on him anyway.
Another story the MSM manufactured to make Trump look bad.
I suspect the "unnamed sources" who floated his name were all named Chris Christie.
Jerry Sandusky will be a special guest on "Sesame Street" before Chris Christie is ever offered an important post in the Trump administration.
Good!
hahahahaha.
What was Trump thinking?
Take no prisoners and take NO BS!!
I don’t think Perry would be a good for that job. Yesterday, I heard Jared Kushner was a possibility.
Kushner never would have allowed this to be offered in the first place.
Thank God. This Yankee lard-a** needs to take a hike.
One doesn’t announce such after a high profile meeting if that really is the case—one tells the president as much up front instead.
So presumably he and Trump were okay with announcing such a meeting either despite their knowing he wasn’t going to be Trump’s choice (giving Trump a little Apprentice-type PR and plumping Christie for some big-bucks lobbying business, given his “access”) — or, more likely, Trump decided after meeting that Christie wasn’t the one.
Let’s just hope the Kushner name float isn’t real.
The new NAFTA Kushner delivered is a massive sellout on multiple levels—as is his “prison reform” atrocity.
But Kushner would have allowed a set-up meeting meant to make Christie ultimately look bad.
\o/
That is a surprise.
Perhaps Chris said, if I take the position, I want to do it MY WAY from the very beginning. If I cannot approach the job MY WAY, then I don’t want it at all!”.
I doubt if Mr. Trump invited Christie to a meeting just to turn him down. Too bad, but best to know now that he would not have been happy doing the job as required.
Based on what?! He hasn't done a thing since becoming AG lead.
i don’t think he was offered a job.
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