New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie may have a 24 point lead over State Sen. Barbara Buono in the race for governor of the Garden State but that's not stopping him from taking offense at comments made by Buono that can be seen as mocking him for his weight, according to Politico.
Christie, who recently had lap-band surgery in an attempt to get his weight under control, spoke about his challenger's comments at a press conference on Tuesday.
"I think that it's unfortunate that Sen. Buono has decided to go down the same path as Gov. [Jon] Corzine did in making comments derisively about my physical appearance," Christie said.
At a campaign even last week in which Buono slammed Christie for already turning his focus toward the national stage as he prepares for a potential presidential campaign in 2016. Buono then turned her attention to an ad promoting tourism that Christie appeared in, according to Politico.
"Now, I don't know about you, but seeing Chris Christie frolicking on the beach is not going to drive me to go to the shore," Buono said.
"The fact that someone running for governor would make derisive comments about someone's physical appearance I think is really beneath the office she's seeking, and I'm disappointed that she's done it, but she's playing out the Corzine playbook in that way and many other ways, too," Christie said.
One person who has come out on Christie's side is the star of the TLC show "Cake Boss," Buddy Valastro. Valastro, owner of Hoboken's Carlo's Bakery, thinks that Buono's comments were out of place and setting a bad example for kids, according to the Huffington Post.
"It is kind of sick, the world we live in," Valastro told the Huffington Post. "People talk about his weight, and we wonder why kids bully kids. I don't care if the governor was fat or skinny, purple or white - if he does a good job, he does a good job."
