Christie: I won't win Iowa, but I want to win among governors

Chris Christie told the Des Moines Register editorial board Friday he doesn’t expect to win the Iowa caucuses, but he wants to beat all the other governors in the first presidential contest.

“I’m not going to win the Iowa caucuses. How about I make that declaration,” the New Jersey governor said. “But I don’t have to. I just think I’m going to do a heck of a lot better here than most people think.”

Christie, who is tied for seventh among Republican candidates with 3 percent support in the latest Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics Iowa Poll, said it would be “the biggest political story of the year” if he won.

During the interview, Christie threw several jabs at senators, arguing that a governor will be more prepared for the Oval Office. Restoring order after Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey in 2012 was the single thing that most prepared him to run for president, he said.

“You can’t get that from sitting on the floor of the United States Senate and voting yes or no,” he said. “There is no crisis they face … There is nothing like that in the Senate. They never face those decisions.”

Christie name-dropped Florida Sen. Marco Rubio several times. The two, who are both competing for business-minded Republicans, have been trading barbs in recent weeks, including dueling campaign videos and verbal jabs during Thursday’s Republican debate.

Christie said he is not worried by the attacks.

“I’m not going like to go back over to the Des Moines Marriott and crawl up into the fetal position because someone is calling me a liar or a flip-flopper,” he said.

In the meeting, Christie displayed the feisty, off-the-cuff style that he has made his trademark.

Asked by Register Publisher David Chivers for his stance on immigration, Christie responded, “Could you be more vague?” He then gave a detailed explanation of how he would reduce illegal immigration using fences, border patrol agents, cameras, employee verification and tracking people who overstay their visas.

On Sotomayor appointment: Christie has taken heat for saying in Thursday's debate that he "didn't support Sonia Sotomayor." Politifact rated this about claim false.

At issue is Sotomayor's 2009 appointment to the Supreme Court by President Barack Obama. In a statement, Christie said he would not have chosen Sotomayor but "I support her confirmation." The statement was released July 17, 2009, after Sotomayor's confirmation hearings, but three weeks before her confirmation vote.

Christie told the editorial board he voiced supporter for Sotormayor only after she was confirmed. He said his point was the Senate should vote on her confirmation rather than hold it up parliamentary procedures.

A spokesperson for Christie said the governor misspoke and meant to say he made the statement after her confirmation hearings.

On flip-flopping: Asked why he faces several accusations about flip-flopping or lying, Christie blamed New Jersey media, saying the state’s largest paper, “can’t stand” him and is “philosophically opposed to almost everything” he does. But he also said he has had a change of heart on several issues since the 1990s, including abortion and banning assault weapons. He now opposes both.

On his approval ratings: Christie’s approval rating in New Jersey stood at 33 percent in December, according to a Rutgers University poll. Asked about his approval rating and his constituents' complaints that he spends too much time on the road campaigning, Christie said that always happens to sitting governors running for the White House.

“I’m looking for a new job, he said. “Your current employer never likes it when you’re looking for a new job.”