Chris Christie calls Trump a 'liar and coward' as first GOP debate looms large

Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie sharpened his attacks on former President Donald Trump on Sunday, calling his rival for the 2024 GOP nomination a "liar" and a "coward."

The former New Jersey governor was reacting to Trump's speech at a conservative gathering Saturday in Florida, where he declared, "I'm being indicted for you," as he sought to defend himself against charges in the special counsel's investigation of his alleged mishandling of classified material after leaving office.

"He's indicted because of his outrageous conduct," Christie told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union."

"There's no other, of the 200 million Americans he spoke about, who illegally retained classified national secrets after being asked politely, quietly and professionally for 18 months to voluntarily turn them back over after he left the White House," the former governor said.

"He now has the opportunity to go to court and make the government prove that case beyond a reasonable doubt. But now he says he doesn't want to have a trial until after the election in 2024. I don't think he's doing that for us, either. He should resolve this thing before people vote, so that we know exactly who we're voting for."

Trump was indicted last month under charges related to his alleged willful retention of national defense information. The first hearing in the probe takes place Tuesday when lawyers from each side will discuss how the classified materials in the case should be handled.

Trump and his co-defendant Walt Nauta cited the need for more time to go through the evidence as a reason for pushing back setting a trial date. Their lawyers have also suggested it would not be possible to seat a fair jury before the 2024 election, with Trump running for the GOP nomination. The special counsel overseeing the probe has rejected those reasons for delaying the trial.