Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said President Donald Trump gained political advantage from conspiracy theories related to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. In an interview broadcast on ABC News’s “This Week,” Christie argued that the president was not merely a passive recipient of the rumors but helped ignite them, noting, “When you start the fire, sometimes you can’t put it out.” Christie, a longtime Republican critic of Trump, pushed back on suggestions that the speculation was driven mainly by people in the president’s orbit. He asserted that Trump himself amplified the narratives and therefore reaped their benefits. Christie’s remarks add to continuing debate over the influence of conspiracy theories on political discourse.