Christie Says He Brings ‘Sense of Calm’ to Trump Rallies

Chris Christie—the New Jersey governor known for having a temper that he described as “controlled anger“—said he brings a “sense of calm” to the rallies for Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump.

Incidents of violence have occurred at several of those rallies in recent weeks, leading up to the cancellation of a rally in Chicago on Friday, when fights broke out between protesters and supporters. Other candidates said Trump set the tone for violence at his rallies. Christie, who endorsed Trump after dropping out of the presidential race, disagreed and said has helped to ease tension at events.

“I bring a sense of calm to the Trump rallies because yesterday I was at three of them—North Carolina, Ohio and Florida—all three of them were calm,” Christie said during a press conference on Tuesday.

“I think this has been something that’s quite frankly been overblown by the media coverage,” Christie said. “I’m tired of seeing the same loop of two or three confrontations that occurred in Chicago played over and over and over again, and I think that Donald made the right decision in canceling that event to ensure that nobody would be injured.”

Christie also said the person who throws a punch—not the speaker—should take responsibility for the incident.

“If you’re going to take a swing at somebody and hit them, you’ve got to be held responsible for that conduct,” Christie said. “Not the person speaking. The person who swings the punch—they should be held responsible.”