‘DO They Know It?’ CNN’s Bash Torpedoes Christie Claim Evangelicals ‘Know Trump Is Not A Man Of Character’

CNN anchor Dana Bash torpedoed former New Jersey governor and Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie’s claim that ex-President Donald Trump “is not a man of character” and evangelical voters “know it” — comically asking “Do they know it?”

On Friday afternoon’s edition of CNN’s Inside Politics, Bash interviewed Christie just minutes after he faced a barrage of jeers at the Faith and Freedom Coalition because he dared to criticize Trump. Christie professed his love for the Evangelical voters at the event and said he’s sure they know that Trump is not a man of character, a notion that Bash immediately attacked:

DANA BASH: That must not have been easy to get booed. But you probably were not surprised.

CHRIS CHRISTIE: Look, half the room was clapping also, and so it was a real mixed bag. But look, I knew that’s what was going to happen when I accepted the invitation. But I’m not changing my message and pandering to anybody. I’m going to tell the truth. The truth matters, Dana, And I’m telling the truth about Donald Trump. And I said outside afterwards that, you know, either he’s a liar or he’s stupid, because he said in an interview yesterday that he never trusted me. Well, he offered me White House chief of staff. So either he’s a liar, that he never trusted me or anybody would offer White House chief of staff to somebody who they don’t trust is stupid, but one or the other. These are issues of character. And in the end, my message today to the Faith and Freedom Coalition, because I love the people that are there, they care deeply about our country. And I want I wanted to tell them the truth. And the truth is he’s not a man of character and they know it.

DANA BASH: Do they know it?

CHRIS CHRISTIE: Yeah! They do!

DANA BASH: So. So then why would they boo you and talk over and over about how wonderful Donald Trump is?

CHRIS CHRISTIE: Because he did some things while president they agreed with. He appointed conservative Supreme Court justices. And I agree with that. Re-instituted the Mexico City accord and I agree with that. So he did some things that they agree with, Dana. But what I’m trying to say to them is leadership is more than just a litmus test of boxes that you check. If you listen to most of the speeches today, it was people trying to check boxes. I’m pro-life. I have a great pro-life record in New Jersey that I’m very proud of. But there can be a lot of issues that come in front of a president, the United States, that you can’t anticipate. Character matters.

Watch above via CNN’s Inside Politics.