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Christie called it a “big mistake” for the GOP to bother Biden at the State of the Union.
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Christie said that by booing Biden, Republicans were falling for the president’s “bait.”
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A better response from the GOP, Christie said, would have been to laugh and move on.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said it was a mistake for Republicans to bother President Joe Biden during his State of the Union address.
“Big mistake. Look, you know, you don’t want to — you don’t want to take the bait. And they did, some of them did, and it was a big mistake,” Christie told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on Sunday.
Christie was referring to the moment of Biden’s speech in which the president accused some members of the GOP of wanting to “want” Medicare and Social Security. The comment was met with a chorus of boos from the GOP. Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene was also seen shouting “liar” at Biden.
“Look, the best response would have been to laugh back,” Christie said, adding that Republicans should have just “carried on.”
“The screaming and screaming, look, I think it’s always bad. It’s getting you nowhere,” Christie said. “And it gave Joe Biden the opportunity to engage them again in a spontaneous way, which I think was probably the best part of his whole speech.”
And Biden immediately rebutted the Republicans who booed him Tuesday.
“So folks, as we all apparently agree, Social Security and health care are off the books now, right? Alright,” Biden said, going off-script in response to rowdy GOP lawmakers.
Republican lawmakers slammed Biden despite House Speaker Kevin McCarthy issuing a warning to the GOP that day, warning them against resorting to “childish” behavior while speaking. Greene was one of the more rowdy: When Biden spoke about the strained relationship between the United States and China, she was heard shouting, “China has been spying on us.”
Meanwhile, Greene told the New York Times on Wednesday that she’s not worried about being reprimanded by McCarthy for her behavior at the State of the Union address.
“I have the speaker’s support and he has mine,” she told the Times.
Representatives from Greene and Christie’s team at the Christie Institute for Public Policy did not immediately respond to Insider requests for comment.
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