Chris Christie in The New York Times

On Foreign Policy: Given who I am, Putin would not have invaded Crimea

According to an audio recording of the event, he said Putin had taken the measure of Obama. "I don't believe, given who I am, that he would make the same judgment," Christie said. "Let's leave it at that." One attendee described Christie's answer as disturbingly heavy on swagger and light on substance.

Christie places tremendous value on the personal projection of authority, as evidenced by his suggestion that Putin would think twice about challenging him. "Foreign policy, in my view, is about human relationships," Christie said at an American Enterprise Institute conference. "Men and women across the world judge each other," Christie said, "and they take a measure of the person based on your actions and your words." With Obama, he said mockingly, "words matter more to him than actions."

On Free Trade: Trade mission to Mexico doubles as foreign policy tour

The pillars of the Christie worldview, as gleaned from about a dozen speeches and public appearances, tend to rise from a simple observation: A high-functioning America at home, liberated from partisan dysfunction, exerts greater influence abroad. "What we say and what we do here at home affects how others see us and in turn affects what it is they say and do," Christie said in 2011.

On War & Peace: Syria: If we draw a red line, we must finish the job