'She’s going to get smoked': Christie caught on hot mic speaking candidly about GOP rivals

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie based his short-lived presidential campaign on his opposition to former President Donald Trump, but he appears to no longer be pulling punches when it comes to his other Republican rivals.

While waiting backstage to speak at an event in New Hampshire, Christie was heard on a hot mic frankly discussing his fellow Republicans' slim chances of beating Trump in the GOP primary

"She's going to get smoked. You and I both know it," Christie said to an aide while referring to former UN ambassador Nikki Haley. "She's not up to this."

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Christie is expected to formally end his 2024 campaign for the Republican presidential nomination in a speech on Wednesday night. He could potentially throw his support behind Haley — Trump's closest opponent in both early state and national polls — in order to give her campaign enough momentum to potentially upset the former president in one of the early nominating contests like Iowa and New Hampshire. However, if his hot mic moment is any indicator, any endorsement may not be taken seriously.

"We know we're right, but they don't want to hear it," Christie said of his campaign's anti-Trump rhetoric. "We couldnt have been any clearer. We couldn't have been more direct or worked any harder."

"[Haley] spent $68 million so far, just on TV. $59 million for DeSantis. And we spent $12 [million]. I mean, who's punching above their weight and who's getting a return on their investment?" Christie added.

The former New Jersey governor was in the middle of telling a story about how he got a private call from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, whom Christie said was "petrified," before his hot mic was ultimately muted.

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Listen to the hot mic audio below, or by clicking this link.