Former Gov. Chris Christie told investigators that President Donald Trump asked him to act as an intermediary to then-FBI Director James Comey in the early days of the Russia investigation, according to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report.

And later, Christie claimed, Trump asked the ex-New Jersey governor whether he should remove Mueller — something Christie said he advised against.

In fact, Trump repeatedly called on Christie, a longtime friend and ally and former federal prosecutor, for advice on how to handle the probe, according to a redacted version of the long-anticipated and heavily scrutinized report released to the public Thursday.

Christie gave his recollections of the incidents during an interview with the special counsel’s office in February, the documents reveal.

The U.S. Justice Department released a redacted version of the report Thursday morning following a press conference convened by U.S. Attorney General William Barr.

The report found a sophisticated effort by the Russian government to influence the 2016 presidential election, but it did not find enough evidence to conclude Trump had colluded with Russian leaders.

Mueller’s team made no determination whether Trump obstructed justice by firing Comey, but the report provides new details about the events surrounding the FBI director’s ouster.

It shows Trump repeatedly leaned on Christie for advice. In all, Christie’s name is mentioned 62 times in the 448-page Mueller report.

One of the most notable moments details a Valentine’s Day lunch Trump had with Christie on Feb. 14, 2017 at the White House.

The lunch — the same one where Trump famously ordered meatloaf for Christie — came shortly after Michael Flynn, the national security advisor, was forced to resign after misleading Vice President Mike Pence about his meetings with Russian officials.

Christie recalled that Trump, a fellow Republican, told him at one point during the lunch: "Now that we fired Flynn, the Russia thing is over,” according to the report.

Christie said he laughed and responded: “No way."

“This Russia thing is far from over,” the former New Jersey governor told the president, according to the report. “We’ll be here on Valentine’s Day 2018 talking about this.”

Trump was confounded, the report said.

“What do you mean?” the president asked. "Flynn met with the Russians. That was the problem. I fired Flynn. It’s over.”

Christie, a former U.S. attorney for New Jersey, said he told Trump that based on his experience, firing Flynn would not end the investigation and that he should refrain from talking about the probe.

“Christie said there was no way to make an investigation shorter, but a lot of ways to make it longer," the report says.

The former governor said he also told Trump he would never be able to get rid of Flynn, “like gum on the bottom of your shoe.”

Toward the end of lunch, Christie said, Trump asked him if he still close with Comey, whom the ex-governor worked with during his time as U.S. attorney. Comey was in charge of the Russia investigation at the time.

Christie said he was, and Trump told Christie to call Comey and tell him the president “really like(s) him."

“Tell him he’s part of the team,” Trump said, according to the report.

Christie said Trump repeated his request at the end of lunch.

Christie said he had no intention of doing so and he thought the request was “nonsensical," according to the report.

The former governor also said he did not want to put Comey in the position of having to receive such a call, according to the report.

“Christie thought it would have been uncomfortable to pass on that message,” the report says.

Trump fired Comey three months later, in May 2017.

In another notable passage in the report, Christie said Trump called him to complain he was getting “killed" in the press for firing Comey and asked the ex-governor what he should do.

Christie said he asked Trump if he fired Comey because of what Deputy U.S. Attorney General Rod Rosenstein wrote in a memo laying out why Comey should be terminated.

Trump said, “Yes.”

Christie said he told Trump to “get Rod out there” and have him defend the decision. Trump told Christie that was a “good idea.”

In yet another key passage, Christie recalled receiving a telephone call from Trump, likely in June 2017, in which the president asked him what he thought about firing Mueller, according to the report.

“Christie advised against doing so because there was no substantive basis for the President to fire the Special Counsel, and because the president would lose support from Republicans in Congress if he did so,” the report says.

The conversation came not long after Trump told White House Counsel Don McGahn — an Atlantic City native — that Mueller “has to go,” according to the report.

McGahn said he took that to believe Trump was instructing Mueller to be fired. McGahn said he refused to follow through and threatened to resign instead.

He eventually stepped down in October 2018.

Mueller’s report said firing the special counsel would have been “an obstructive act."

Christie did not immediately return a message from NJ Advance Media seeking comment Thursday.

Trump heralded the report during comments at the White House.

”It’s called no collusion, no obstruction,” he said.

”This should never happen to another president again. This hoax,” Trump added.

WATCH: Trump reacts to the #MuellerReport: "This hoax" should "never happen to another president" https://t.co/8n7i1sBHVF pic.twitter.com/UKp2gkOBnu — The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) April 18, 2019

NJ Advance Media staff writers Matt Arco and Ted Sherman contributed to this report.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter.

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