FORT WORTH, Texas — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Friday received the high-profile endorsement of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who called the billionaire the best candidate in the field.
“I’ve gotten to know all the people on that stage, and there is no one who is better prepared to provide America with the strong leadership that it needs both at home and around the world than Donald Trump,” Christie said during a news conference with Trump in Fort Worth.
Christie said he believes the party needs to elect the best candidate to beat Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. Christie said Trump is “undoubtedly” the best person for the job and said he “is rewriting the playbook of American politics.”
Trump, who stood smiling next to Christie as the governor gave his endorsement, called it “a very big endorsement.” He added the endorsement means a lot to him and his campaign, calling it “the one endorsement” he wanted most.
“Donald Trump is someone who when he makes a promise, he keeps it,” Christie said. “No one is going to get inside this guy’s head. There is no better fighter than Donald Trump.”
Christie’s endorsement comes eight days before the Maine Republican Party caucuses. As is the case nationally, few Republican elected officials in Maine have endorsed Trump, with most who have committed backing Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida or Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Sen. Susan Collins supported former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who left the race after crushing defeats in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Maine Gov. Paul LePage, who endorsed Christie and campaigned for the New Jersey governor in New Hampshire, has yet to throw his support behind any of the remaining Republican presidential candidates.
In advance of Maine’s Republican caucuses on March 5 and Democratic caucuses on March 6, campaigns are sending surrogates to the state to stump for their candidates. Donald Trump Jr. is expected to visit Maine to campaign for his father next week, and Olympic figure skating medalist Michelle Kwan will make campaign appearances Tuesday in Bangor, Augusta and Portland on behalf of Clinton.