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Some don't like Christie because he makes no apologies for telling it like it is, regardless of whether people want to hear it or not.
Read more: Chris Christie Calls Out Democrats and Republicans on Fiscal Issues - FoxNews.com
New Jerseys Republican Governor Chris Christie spared no punches Wednesday, lashing out at both Republicans and Democrats for what he calls their failure to face the countrys fiscal issues.
I look at whats happening in Washington D.C. right now and Im worried. Im worried," Christie said to a crowded room at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington.
The flamboyant Garden State governor says leaders arent talking about the toughest and most important problems America faces, and he calls their silence on fiscal issues a political strategy being played by both Republicans and Democrats.
The presidents not talking about it because hes waiting for the Republicans to talk about it, Christie said. And our new bold Republicans we just sent to the House of Representatives, theyre not talking about it because theyre waiting for him to talk about it. Let me suggest to you that my childrens future and your childrens future is more important than some political strategy. Let me suggest to you that what game is being played down here is irresponsible and it is dangerous. We need to say these things and we need to say them out loud.
In his remarks, Christie, who was elected in 2009 as the first Republican governor of New Jersey in 12 years, said his management style is to [fix] problems in a blunt and direct way." And he criticized elected leaders who are unwilling to tackle difficult issues, like entitlement reform.
When we say were cutting spending, when we say everythings on the table, when we say we mean entitlement programs, we should be specific.
And he talked specifically about Social Security reforms.
Heres the truth that nobodys talking about. You're gonna have to raise the retirement age for social security, he said. Whoa, I just said it, and I'm still standing here. I did not vaporize.
Christie also criticized what President Obama called big things in his State of the Union speech last month, saying things like the proliferation of high-speed rail and internet are the candy of American politics and arent where attention should be focused.
Those are not the big things, he said. Because let me guarantee you something, if we dont fix the big things, there aint going to be electric cars on the road. [Theres] gonna be no high speed internet access and if there is, youre not going to be able to afford to get on it. Were not going to be able to care about the niceties of life, the investments Washington wants to make.
Christie points to three big things hes started in New Jersey that need to spread across the country.
Its restoring and maintaining fiscal sanity. Its getting our pension and health benefits under control, reformed and have the costs lowered, and its reforming and education system that costs too much and produces too little.
And Christie says those are issues that that both Republican and Democratic governors face. As an example, he points across the Hudson to New Yorks new governor Andrew Cuomo.
You have me elected in New Jersey in 2009, as a conservative Republican in one of the bluest states in America, and across the river, you have the son of a liberal icon who is saying the exact same things that Im saying.
He went on to note some specific issues governors across the country are dealing with.
These problems and issues are not partisan. They are obvious. And they are long overdue to be solved. And thats why you see Andrew Cuomo, or for gods sake, even Jerry Brown in California, talking about reducing the salaries of state workers by 8-to-10 percent.
Read more: Chris Christie Calls Out Democrats and Republicans on Fiscal Issues - FoxNews.com