Christie promises donors his ‘spartan’ campaign is in it for the long haul

Chris Christie's campaign is telling donors a "spartan" approach to spending and uncompromising attacks on Donald Trump will keep in the race as the Republican presidential field begins to winnow.

“Trump’s conduct has proven that he is unfit to be president again. Chris Christie is the only one willing to make that case,” the Christie team asserts in a 38-slide presentation presented to the pro-business American Opportunity Alliance in recent weeks and shared with POLITICO. “While every other candidate is afraid to take on Trump, only Christie recognizes you must confront the frontrunner to win.”

To illustrate the point, the pitch includes video clips of Christie going after Trump, whom he endorsed in 2016 and has since turned on as he mounts a challenge to the former president and overwhelming frontrunner.

In the presentation, Christie’s campaign also accuses his GOP primary opponents of “running for second place or a spot in Trump’s cabinet.”

Other candidates have questioned Trump’s viability in a general election and his commitment to Republican ideals: Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor, has slammed him for raising the national debt, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently launched a tracker keeping tabs on Trump’s gaffes. But Christie has been relatively alone in consistently criticizing Trump’s role in trying to overturn the 2020 election and calling into question his character.

The former New Jersey governor’s team also boasted of his relatively low burn rate, in contrast with rivals like South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and DeSantis, who have spent at a far faster clip. “The Christie campaign is proving to be the best steward of donors’ contributions, with a lean, responsible operation that is bringing in cash and keeping burn rate low,” the presentation reads.

As of the most recent FEC filing through Sept. 30, Christie had $3.9 million available for the primary — less than DeSantis, Haley and Scott — but has spent less of what he has raised than most of his opponents.

Christie’s advisers made their presentation to GOP donors as many of them openly search for a viable alternative to Trump just three months before Iowa kicks off the Republican primary on Jan. 15. They portrayed his rivals’ turns as leading alternatives to Trump as fleeting and emphasized Christie’s relative popularity in the early voting state of New Hampshire.

Even in New Hampshire, however, Christie trails Trump, Haley and DeSantis according to Real Clear Politics’ polling average, but his support is trending up while DeSantis’ is falling.

Christie is banking on support from New Hampshire’s coveted independent voters, and recently traveled to South Carolina to try to win over independents there as well.

“Strategy is simple. Keep the burn rate low, keep the fire focused on Trump, and make it a two man race going into Super Tuesday,” Christie adviser Doug Mayer said.

Jessica Piper contributed to this report.