Chris Christie said the quiet part out loud: Trump's the likely GOP nominee

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     December 7, 2023 Chris Christie let it all out last night. At the fourth Republican debate (if you didn't know it was happening, you're forgiven), the former New Jersey governor said what his three opponents—Vivek Ramaswamy, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis—wouldn't: Their biggest threat wasn't even on the stage. Former President Donald Trump—or, as Christie called him, "Voldemort, he who shall not be named"—is [leading]( President Joe Biden in five out of six battleground states, according to a sobering New York Times/Siena College poll [that dropped last month](. He’s also leading the GOP race in Iowa, [polling at an average of over 45 percent]( just a month ahead of the caucus. Yet most of the candidates for the Republican nomination seemed to prefer to pretend Trump doesn't exist, in part because he refuses to show up to the debates. “We’re 17 minutes into this debate and…we’ve had these three acting as if this race is between the four of us,” Christie said. “The fifth guy, who doesn’t have the guts to show up and stand here, he’s the one who…is way ahead in the polls.” But even Christie couldn't avoid getting sucked into the sideshow, eventually forgetting his focus on Trump and instead calling Ramaswamy "the most obnoxious blowhard in America." Nonetheless, he makes a good point: These debates seem increasingly pointless when the likely nominee is consistently MIA, and when those who are on stage have very little chance of securing the nomination—which might have something to do with the fact that they spend their airtime [fighting over who's the most transphobic]( and railing against the "deep state" and the "woke industrial complex." (Yes, really.) Do you agree? Is there any point to these debates when Trump doesn't show? And do the other Republican contenders need to be more willing to take him to task? [Let us know](. We'll see if any of Christie's opponents take his words to heart at the next GOP debate, [on Jan. 10 in Iowa](. Buckle up. —Julianne McShane Advertisement [National Park Foundation]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Chris Christie Said the Quiet Part Out Loud]( The candidates' biggest threat isn't on the stage. BY JULIANNE MCSHANE MOJO MUST-READS BY DANIEL SCHULMAN   The Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America The incredible saga of the German-Jewish immigrants—with now familiar names like Goldman and Sachs, Kuhn and Loeb, Warburg and Schiff, Lehman and Seligman—who profoundly influenced the rise of modern finance, from New York Times best-selling author Daniel Schulman. [Get The Money Kings here.]( [Trending] [GOP candidates competed over who's the most transphobic]( BY JULIANNE MCSHANE   [Historic ruling: A Texas judge just granted a woman's petition to abort for medical reasons]( BY KATIE HERCHENROEDER   [In the wake of a sex scandal, a Moms for Liberty co-founder’s career is crumbling]( BY KIERA BUTLER   [Congress incentivizes rare disease research. Big Pharma exploits it.]( BY JULIA MÉTRAUX Advertisement [National Park Foundation]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( [The war in Gaza has come for the climate movement]( Greta Thunberg lands in hot water as activist groups ponder their role. BY AJIT NIRANJAN, DAMIEN GAYLE AND NINA LAKHANI [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755