Chris Christie isn’t winning much of anything these days, but Fatty McThunderbiscuits did manage to intimidate New Jersey Republican State Committee members into keeping his long-time ally, Bill Palatucci, in place as the state’s male RNC member on Thursday evening.
Donald Trump had endorsed Palatucci’s opponent, Atlantic County GOP Chairman Don Purdy, who nevertheless went on to lose a close 22-20 contest with the incumbent despite receiving the former president’s vocal support. Christie showed up at the Woodbridge meeting site and loomed large (pun intended) over the proceedings which proceeded by secret ballot in order to shield anti-Trump county committee members from being outed.
What can only be seen as a major rebuke of the party’s leader and presumptive 2024 nominee by Garden State GOP leaders came mere hours before Trump took the stage in debate #1 with Joe Biden.
Still, Christie’s preoccupation with the relatively low-stakes contest indicates how far he’s fallen in recent years following Bridgegate, two failed presidential campaigns, and a possibly permanently tarnished brand.
The N.J. GOP delegation to next month’s RNC in Milwaukee has already been reduced by 40 seats due to a rule supported by Palatucci.
It remains to be seen whether Palatucci can even continue in the position despite winning reelection in light of RNC Rule 4(b) which prevents national committee members from being seated unless they support the nominee; Palatucci is an ardently anti-Trump Republican who’s supported Trump’s impeachment and currently co-leads a PAC which sells anti-Trump merchandise.
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