Gov. Chris Christie said Friday he told President Donald Trump to take him out of the running to become the next White House chief of staff.

Christie’s announcement comes a day after he discussed the job with Trump — a longtime friend and fellow Republican — in person during a meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C.

It also came after reports earlier Friday that Christie was considered the front-runner to replace outgoing Chief of Staff John Kelly.

“It’s an honor to have the President consider me as he looks to choose a new White House chief-of-staff,” Christie said in a statement he released around 1 p.m. Friday. “However, I told the President that now is not the right time for me or my family to undertake this serious assignment. As a result, I have asked not to be considered for this post.”

Within hours of Christie’s statement, Trump announced that Mick Mulvaney, his budget director, will serve as his acting chief of staff.

A senior administration official told reporters Friday there’s no time limit on how long Mulvaney, a former congressman from South Carolina, will serve in the position.

....I look forward to working with him in this new capacity as we continue to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! John will be staying until the end of the year. He is a GREAT PATRIOT and I want to personally thank him for his service! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 14, 2018

So what happened? Not long after Christie’s announcement, Josh Dawsey, a reporter from the Washington Post, tweeted that Christie allies “resent that Trump had toyed" with the former New Jersey governor.

People close to Christie resent that Trump had toyed with him -- removal from transition team, not picking him as AG. This time, POTUS was quite interested in Christie as chief of staff, per several White House advisers, and saw him as a front-runner. And Christie said no. — Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) December 14, 2018

The Post later reported, according to an anonymous person close to Christie, that a number of current and former White House aides warned the ex-governor the building was unmanageable under Trump and “no one can have success there."

Christie was the second person to reject the job. Nick Ayers, chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, declined after Trump offered it to him last weekend.

The Post, citing an anonymous senior White House official, reported that Trump was frustrated by the rejections, so he suddenly went with Mulvaney on Thursday evening.

After his own bid for the Republican presidential nomination fizzled in 2016, Christie became one of the first high-profile GOP figures to endorse Trump’s candidacy. Later, Trump named Christie head of his transition team.

But Trump passed Christie over for vice president and removed Christie as transition chief shortly after being elected. He also did not give Christie a job the governor coveted: U.S. attorney general.

Christie said last year he turned down a number of other positions that Trump offered him around the time the president prepared to be sworn in. He has said vice president and attorney general were the only posts he wanted.

Still, Christie’s name has continued to be floated for jobs in Trump’s administration.

Just last month, a source told NJ Advance Media that Christie, a former federal prosecutor, was a finalist to replace Jeff Sessions as attorney general. But Trump instead went with William Barr, a former attorney general under then-President George H.W. Bush.

Chief of staff might have made sense considering Christie’s familiarity with Trump’s personality. And the president, a former Atlantic City casino mogul who owns three private golf courses in New Jersey, has said repeatedly he’s a fan of Christie’s.

Unlike attorney general, chief of staff doesn’t require confirmation by the U.S. Senate. Some feared Bridgegate would have complicated Christie’s confirmation should Trump have nominated him as attorney general.

But as powerful as it is to be the president’s right-hand man, the job had many drawbacks for Christie, who left the governorship in January after his two-term limit was up.

The chief of staff makes about $180,000, and Christie would have had to give up lucrative set of post-governorship jobs.

Christie works as a political analyst for ABC News and launched his own law firm. He also travels the country for paid speaking gigs and has a book scheduled to be released next month — which could have been complicated by joining the White House.

Plus, Christie still has two children in high school.

Christie told reporters during an appearance in Atlantic City last month: “I love my life that I have right now."

“I’m more relaxed than I have been in 16 years,” he said. “(Wife) Mary Pat and I are enjoying our time.”

Then, there’s managing the sometimes tumultuous White House under the unpredictable Trump — in a job with heavy turnover. Christie would have been the third White House chief of staff in fewer than two years.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Jonathan D. Salant contributed to this report.

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

Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook.