GOP 2016 Christie

Fried What owner Norma Bowers, of Dallas, smiles after GOP 2016 potential presidential candidate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie tried a Bacon Wrapped Oreo at Bix Street Fest, Friday, July, 24, 2015, in Davenport, Iowa.

(Louis Brems/Quad City Times via AP)

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Gov. Chris Christie and a group supporting his presidential campaign plan to spend close to $1 million dollars for ads on Fox News, the television channel sponsoring a Republican candidates debate next month.

Fox News is hosting the event on Aug. 6, and Christie is perilously close to being knocked off the main stage of the debate, which will only be open to 10 candidates who rate highest in national polls.

Christie's campaign announced the new national ad on Friday, the same day the super PAC supporting the governor's 2016 campaign -- America Leads -- said it plans to run its own national ad on Fox News.

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The PAC declined to say how much it would spend on the ad buy, but a person familiar will the details who was not authorized to discuss the cost said the American Leads plans to invest about $750,000 in the ad buy.

The Christie campaign is spending $250,000 on the ad titled "Protect America," that will appear on Fox News, campaign spokeswoman, Samantha Smith confirmed.

Christie arrived in Iowa, home to the nation's first presidential caucus, on Friday afternoon for a two-day, four-city tour of the state.

Speaking to residents in a Davenport restaurant named the Jersey Grille, he again criticized President Obama and the deal with Iran on halting work on nuclear weapons.

"We have no business ... allowing our president to put us at risk," Christie told 150 voters who came to hear his pitch. He blasted the deal as something that puts the nation in danger.

After answering questions that touched on a range of issues from military spending and gun rights to social security reform and term limits for federal lawmakers, he left the restaurant for a nearby street fair.

Street vendors lined blocks selling homemade goods and every sort of fried food, corn dog and oversized bags of popcorn.

"I have to eat it," Christie told a staffer after a vendor handed him a deep-fried, bacon-wrapped Oreo.

"She made it for me," he said, before taking a bite and passing the rest to an aide, just in time for the same vendor to pass the governor a deep-fried ball of cookie dough.

The governor walked the street for an about an hour, shaking hands with people, some of whom recognized him from TV and shouted, "Hey, Chris!"

Between handshakes, the governor did some shopping, picking up a bracelet for his daughter and a dishtowel with Elvis Presley's face printed on it, saying it was for Charles McKenna, his former chief counsel.

"Elvis towel, baby," he told reporters asking what he bought.

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