Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) criticized his fellow Republicans for rising to the “bait” and heckling President Joe Biden during the State of the Union this past Tuesday.
Christie called the situation a “big mistake” during ABC’s This Week roundtable after Republicans jeered and heckled Biden over his comments that certain Republicans want to cut Social Security and Medicare. He said the better response would have been laughter.
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“If you really wanted to respond to the president saying something as ridiculous as the Republicans — because of what one Republican has said, Rick Scott (R-FL), which was immediately rejected by almost the entire rest the party — what they should have done was just laughed at the president then, and moved on,” Christie said.
Scott’s 12-point “Rescue America” agenda, which he announced nearly a year ago, has been the subject of recent scrutiny from Democrats due to a provision that would sunset all federal legislation after five years, including Social Security and Medicare — which Biden latched on to in his address.
Several Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, have called the agenda a bad idea that could cost Scott reelection in Florida and ultimately weaken the GOP party’s popularity with senior voters.
Christie believed that Republicans reacted exactly the way the president hoped they would, providing him an opportunity for on-the-spot “conversion,” as Biden put it.
“You don’t want to rise to the bait, and they did. A number of them did,” Christie said.
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He added that the screaming and yelling from GOP lawmakers is “always bad” and gave Biden the “best part” of the night.
“It doesn’t get you anywhere, and it gave Joe Biden an opportunity to engage them back in a way that was spontaneous, that I think was probably the best part of his entire speech.”
