(CNN) — New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says it’s ridiculous for Ben Carson to claim he’s getting scrutiny unlike anyone else in the presidential race — and that the burden of proof is on him to prove his life story.
The Republican candidate told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on “New Day” that Carson’s complaints about the media’s questioning his biography — a central feature of his presidential campaign — are misplaced.
“I heard him this morning saying he’s more scrutinized than anyone in this race … Is he kidding? Did he watch what I went through in January of 2014 for months and months of relentless attacks … when it turned out that I did absolutely doing nothing wrong?” Christie said, referring to the investigation into whether his office initiated a traffic-causing bridge closure as political retribution.
Christie said that every presidential candidate brings forward their personal story to the media and the public as part of their qualifications to be president, so that “absolutely” is open to scrutiny from the media.
“A couple of days of being asked about something that you put in your books? I got to tell you, I don’t have a lot of sympathy,” Christie said. “He should answer the questions forthrightly and directly. If he does, the American people will accept it. If he doesn’t, then he’s got a problem.”
Carson defended himself over the past week, and said that the media is unfairly scrutinizing his record more so than his fellow 2016 presidential candidates, or even President Barack Obama.
“The vetting that you all did with President Obama doesn’t even come close, doesn’t even come close to what you guys are trying to do in my case, and you’re just going to keep going back, ‘He said this 12 years ago’ — it is just garbage,” Carson told CNN’s Alisyn Camerota on Friday. “Give me a break.”
The outspoken New Jersey governor, who was just bumped from the main debate stage to the undercard debate Tuesday because of lagging poll numbers, said that there is one point he agrees with Carson on, and that is that the media is too quick to assume guilt.
“I got the scars all over my back to prove that people jumped to conclusions,” Christie said, again referring to the bridge scandal. “People jump to conclusions about guilt and innocence, and we shouldn’t be doing those things.”
But he said Carson needs to be forthcoming to get the media to move on.
“He put the story out there in the first place, so he has the responsibility to back it up,” Christie said. “If he does, believe me, Chris, we’ll move on next week to something else. If you don’t, that’s when it lingers.”
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