New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said concerns that his weight would prevent him from serving as president were "ridiculous" in an interview set to air Wednesday.
In an interview for Barbara Walters's "10 Most Fascinating People" series, the broadcast veteran asked the New Jersey governor how he would respond to "people who say that you couldn't be president because you're so heavy."
"That's ridiculous, I mean, that's ridiculous," Christie responded. "I mean, I don't know what the basis for that is."
Walters said those expressing concern were worried about Christie's health.
"Well, I've done this job pretty well. And I think people watched me for the last couple weeks and during Hurricane Sandy doing 18-hour days and getting right back up the next day and still being just as effective. So I don't really think that would be a problem," Christie responded.
Christie has seen his poll numbers skyrocket in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, with his response to the storm receiving high marks.
A poll released last week by Rutgers-Eagleton gave Christie a 53-43 edge over Newark, N.J., Mayor Cory Booker (D) in a hypothetical head-to-head match-up in a gubernatorial race next year. It comes as a separate poll from Quinnipiac University showed Christie with a 72 percent approval rating in his state. That's the highest approval rating on record for a New Jersey governor.
Still, while Christie's post-storm response and vocal embrace of President Obama have helped him at home, there are suggestions that he may have been hurt with the Republican base.
A Public Policy Polling poll released last week showed Christie second in the Republican primary field, trailing Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). While Rubio's lead can be attributed to his popularity with strong conservatives, among the most likely to vote in a presidential primary, Christie earned much of his support of centrist voters in the Republican electorate. Christie's net 21-point positive favorability, as judged by Republican primary voters, was last among Republican candidates.
