It's the relationship that just won't end.
Speaking to 3,000 military and civilian personnel in New Jersey, President Barack Obama opened with fond memories of the time he spent with Gov. Chris Christie on the Jersey Shore last year.
He recalled that during a visit to see the rebuilding from Superstorm Sandy, Christie’s children showed him how to play frog bog. Obama then pledged a rematch to the football toss, which Christie won, perhaps setting up another meeting between the two.
Christie, who is contemplating a run for the Republican presidential nomination, and Obama have had a headline-grabbing relationship since Christie embraced the president – literally and figuratively. Just days before the 2012 presidential election when Obama visited New Jersey to assess damage of Super storm Sandy, and Republicans became furious with Christie for allowing Obama to look presidential during a tough reelection battle against Republican Mitt Romney.
Christie, along with New Jersey Senators Cory Booker and Bob Menendez, greeted the president on the tarmac of the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey where Obama thanked the audience for their service.
“We stand proud of you, we support you and we could never thank you enough,” he told the crowd.
While Obama acknowledged the threats posed by ISIS and cautioned that the campaign against the extremist group in Iraq will not be quick, he also noted that in just two weeks, the U.S. combat mission in Afghanistan will be over after 14 years of war.
- Leigh Ann Caldwell