'I gave him my undying loyalty, he definitely gave me COVID': Chris Christie quips about how Trump made him sick
Chris Christie joked over the weekend about Donald Trump giving him COVID after Mark Meadows' new book revealed the former president knew he had the virus before his first debate with Joe Biden.
'I joke about Donald. But, I'm still really proud to have provided some help to his administration,' Christie said during a comedy speech at the Gridiron Club on Saturday, according to a recording obtained by Politico.
'I mean, I gave Donald Trump my undying loyalty, and as we learned this week, he definitely gave me COVID,' continued the former New Jersey governor who served as a top advisor to Trump.
The comments came after Christie revealed in his new book Republican Rescue: Saving the Party from Truth Deniers, Conspiracy Theorists, and the Dangerous Policies of Joe Biden that Trump urged him not to tell people he gave him coronavirus.
'Are you gonna say you got it from me?' Trump asked when calling Christie from Walter Reed Medical Center in October 2020.
Chris Christie joked at the Gridiron Dinner about Donald Trump giving him COVID. 'I gave Donald Trump my undying loyalty, and as we learned this week, he definitely gave me COVID,' Christie said at the Gridiron Club on Saturday
Christie was hospitalized in New Jersey the day after Trump was moved to Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland for treatment. He spent a week in the ICU with a serious bout of the virus.
The Gridiron Club met Saturday for a members-and-spouses-only dinner at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Washington, D.C.
Republican Christie and Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin were the two marquee-name politicians at the event.
The two roasted themselves, each other, the audience, Trump and President Joe Biden – who both were not at the event.
'I was a little worried that Donald would be upset when he read [my new book],' Christie joked at the Gridiron Dinner. 'But then I remembered: It's a book; no chance.'
Raskin then took a jab at the anemic sales of Christie's book: 'I encourage everyone here to check out the governor's book, which you can still be the first to order on Amazon.'
Christie told Axios on HBO last month when promoting his book that he has not spoken to Trump since before the January 6 Capitol riot.
Mark Meadows, who served as President Trump's chief of staff, details in his new memoir The Chief's Chief that Trump received a positive COVID test before his first debate with then-presidential candidate Biden. Trump subsequently received a second test, which came back negative.
He also wrote in his book that he 'instructed everyone in his immediate circle to treat [Trump] as if he was positive.'
The former New Jersey Republican governor revealed in his book that Trump urged him not to tell people he gave him coronavirus
Trump slammed reports claiming he had a positive test ahead of the debate as 'fake news,' and Meadows reiterated that, claiming it was a false positive.
Meadows writes that Trump tested positive on September 26, the day he held a Rose Garden event announcing Judge Amy Coney Barrett as his Supreme Court nominee.
The reception, now known to be a superspreader event, included some of the biggest names in government at the time and while it was held outside, very few masks were seen being worn.
Several people who attended the event and were pictured mingling with Trump were also infected with coronavirus – including Christie.
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