Mr. Christie, 1st Repub elected governor in heavily Democratic NJ since 1997, Takes Office (124 hits)
Taking Office, Christie Sees State’s Last Hope for Turnaround
TRENTON — Saying he would not squander New Jersey’s “last, best hope” to reverse its decline, Christopher J. Christie took office on Tuesday as the state’s 55th governor, vowing to break through partisan gridlock to bring about lower taxes, economic resurgence and school choice.
Facing an $8 billion deficit, falling tax receipts and high unemployment, Mr. Christie said he would slash state government and compel cities and towns to spend less. “Our state is losing ground,” he said after his noontime swearing-in here. “Our people are dispirited and wondering if our best days are truly still ahead of us.”
The inauguration was the centerpiece of a no-frills day of celebration that began with a solemn Mass at the seat of the Archdiocese of Newark, the city where Mr. Christie was born, and ended at a low-key evening party at the two-year-old hockey arena in downtown Newark.
Few luminaries attended the festivities. Donald J. Trump sat in the front pew of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the morning Eucharist celebration. Michael S. Steele, the Republican national chairman, and Woody Johnson, the owner of the Jets, attended the swearing-in at the Trenton War Memorial.
Mr. Christie’s speech offered more determination than inspiration, even when he called on legislators and citizens alike to dispense with cynicism and lend a hand. Though he used the word “change” some 15 times — repeatedly saying “change has arrived,” for example — he shared few specifics about how the changes he envisioned would be implemented, and at what price.
Winning approval for any significant measures will require the help of Democrats, who have controlled both houses of the Legislature since 2004. In the middle of his speech, Mr. Christie seemed to acknowledge as much, making a conspicuous display of bipartisanship when he beckoned the two Democratic legislative leaders to the podium for what he called “a handshake of resolve and friendship.”
One of the leaders whose hands he clasped, Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney of Gloucester County, later observed that Mr. Christie’s agenda would require enormous cooperation on many levels...
