New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s (R) weight both concerned and amused Mitt Romney, according to a book that chronicles the 2012 presidential campaign.
In “Double Down,” the sequel to the 2008 campaign recountal “Game Change,” authors John Heilemann and Mark Halperin write that Romney initially nixed the idea of Christie as a running mate because of the governor’s tendency to be late to campaign events and his health.
From the book, via the Washington Post:
“Romney marveled at Christie’s girth, his difficulties in making his way down the narrow aisle of the campaign bus,” the authors write. “Watching a video of Christie without his suit jacket on, Romney cackled to his aides, ‘Guys! Look at that!’”
A pair of advisers convinced Romney to reconsider Christie, but the outspoken New Jersey Republican was ultimately written off due to a number of unanswered questions ranging from a defamation lawsuit earlier in his career to his medical history.
According to the Post, the book also describes Christie as being unimpressed with the the GOP nominee’s campaign and details a heated confrontation between the governor and Romney adviser Ron Kaufman at the Republican National Convention.
“I’m tired of you people!!!” Christie is quoted as saying, evidently a reaction to the criticism he received for his keynote address at the convention. “Leave me the [expletive] alone!!!!”
That reported quarrel came about two months before Christie’s public embrace of President Barack Obama following Hurricane Sandy left plenty of Romney supporters feeling jilted.
With his state still reeling from the storm, Christie declined an invitation to attend a Romney campaign rally in neighboring Pennsylvania on the weekend before the election.
