New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says it's "inappropriate" to criticize the Gold Star families of fallen soldiers — refusing to adopt Donald Trump's attack on the parents of hero Muslim Army Capt. Humayun Khan, NJ Advance Media reports.
Speaking at a Statehouse news conference Tuesday, Christie became the latest Republican politician to distance himself from Trump amid his war of words with Khan's Muslim parents, Khizr and Ghazala, who've spoken out against the GOP presidential nominee.
The hero soldier died in Iraq in 2004.
"I'm a father and I cannot imagine the pain of losing a child under any circumstances," Christie said, calling the loss "unfathomable," the news outlet reports.
"I think it gives them the right to say whatever they want, whether they're right or wrong," he said. "We need to honor their son's sacrifice."
"You're not going to find me being critical of Mr. or Mrs. Kahn," he added.
Yet though Christie called it "inappropriate" for anyone to criticize the Kahns or Gold Star parents, he stopped short of taking any direct jabs at Trump.
Asked if he thought Trump went too far in his reaction to Khan's blistering condemnation of Trump at the Democratic National Convention, Christie told reporters he speaks to Trump often and gives the nominee his opinions during their talks — and that those talks remain private, NJ Advance Media reports.
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