Assembly Majority Leader Louis Greenwald (D-Camden/Burlington) on Tuesday released the following statement on Governor Christie’s 2013 State of the State address:
“The reason the Governor’s response to Hurricane Sandy was well-received is because he put the divisive politics of the past aside and worked together on a bipartisan basis to help our state respond to the storm. In order to get our state firmly back on track, he needs to take the same approach in his economic, fiscal and social policies.
“For three years, middle class families and seniors have seen rising costs, stagnating wages, escalating property taxes and disappearing job opportunities. As leaders on both sides of the political aisle can surely agree, we need to reverse this course.
“Rebuilding our storm-ravaged communities is of paramount concern, but we cannot ignore the problems we faced before Sandy and permit them to worsen. Rising property taxes and a continuing unemployment crisis are problems we must address, and I am hopeful the Governor will join with us in bipartisan spirit to do so.
“We need a broad approach that addresses our underlying economic crisis so that we will be better positioned to help all our citizens–whether it’s our shore towns, our struggling middle-class families, or our senior citizens.
“I hope the kinder, gentler Chris Christie that emerged after Sandy will be the one that remains as we move forward and address these challenges.”