Super Tuesday 2016

Donald Trump declared victory Tuesday, and all anyone could talk about was Chris Christie's sad face

March 2, 2016

.polaris__post-meta--date { display: none; } .polaris__post-meta--date.no-script { display: block; padding-left: 45px } March 2, 2016

Chris Christie's sad face trumped Trump's victory speech

Getty Images

Donald Trump held a victory rally and press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday night, after dominating the Republican Super Tuesday primaries. Gov. Chris Christie (N.J.), who endorsed him last Friday, introduced Trump, then stood behind him for Trump's entire speech. It was not a joyful-looking introduction, and Christie didn't appear any happier standing behind Trump.

Trump may have won the night, but Chris Christie won the Internet. #freechrischristie https://t.co/MyE6xM3iSv https://t.co/QuELP2OJH1
— Jim Roberts (@nycjim) March 2, 2016

One theory for Christie's sad faces was that he was filled with remorse:

#FreeChrisChristie RT @Khanoisseur: “MY GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE?”https://t.co/vXKz2wnLqu
— Ryan Molnar (@Ryan_Molnar) March 2, 2016

But the more popular explanation, summarized in the hashtag #FreeChrisChristie, was that Trump is holding Christie under duress:

I've now seen 4 different people on Twitter independently suggest that Chris Christie may actually be a hostage.
— Kate Norton (@norton_kate) March 2, 2016

Christie, who suddenly started calling the GOP frontrunner Mr. Trump, eventually showed a smile. But that didn't end the hostage hashtag:

When Stockholm Syndrome finally sets in pic.twitter.com/iD3xgwvsfY
— GIF The News (@NowThisGIF) March 2, 2016

Or maybe for Christie, anywhere is better than New Jersey tonight — even standing behind his erstwhile rival.