(NewsNation) — Polling single digits behind several Republican presidential hopefuls, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is going all-in on New Hampshire, where he’s been campaigning this week.
He says it’s do-or-die time for his campaign, telling The New York Times, “If I don’t do well in New Hampshire, then I’ll leave” the campaign.
Christie said Thursday on NewsNation’s “CUOMO” that doing “well” means finishing in the top four in the state’s primary.
“If you don’t do well in the first few states, you should get out of the race. Voters are speaking, money will dry up. I’m just being practical about it,” Christie said. “That’s what I’ve been doing the whole campaign, I’m just telling people the truth. I’m shooting straight.”
Christie has been an unapologetically anti-Donald Trump candidate, telling Republican voters it’s time to move on from the former president. The message hasn’t quite resonated, as Christie is polling in sixth place at 2.9%, according to RealClearPolitics national averages.
He sees optimism in New Hampshire, where he is polling in third at 8% behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Trump.
“I feel like we’re going to do very well there,” Christie said. “I think top four is absolutely attainable for us, and that’s what we’re going for.”
Christie will need the momentum if he wants to beat Trump, the current front-runner, for the nomination. He noted Trump failed to deliver on key campaign promises, including building a wall at the southern border and repealing the Affordable Care Act.
“As a president, he did not keep his promises, he did not keep his word, so you go at him that way,” Christie said of his strategy to sway current Trump supporters.
On policy matters, Christie said he would “unleash” domestic oil and natural gas production to lower inflation.
The United States is already the world’s biggest oil producer. U.S. crude exports have averaged 4.08 million barrels per day so far in 2023, up from an average of 3.53 million bpd in 2022, according to the Energy Information Administration.
“We are creating a lot of oil here in this country, but not nearly as much as we could be,” Christie said. “The regulations and the caps that Joe Biden has put on that in response to the environmental left are wrong, and they are costing us our position in the world market.”
Reuters contributed to this report.