Christie tells lawmakers he will still be ‘here’ a year from now

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Gov. Chris Christie gave a nod to the talk of his 2016 presidential ambitions during his annual State of the State address, telling lawmakers he "will be here" next year.

Christie departed from the prepared remarks of his fifth annual address to knowingly tell legislators in the Assembly Chamber Tuesday that he will be standing before them in 2016 again.

Christie is weighing whether to run for the Republican nomination for the White House in 2016 and many question whether he would have to step down to pursue that effort.

Republicans applauded. Members of the Democratic majority were quiet.

Christie proclaimed New Jersey to be better off than when he came to office amid a sagging national economy, delivering a State of the State address designed to sell himself to a national audience as he prepares for a presidential run.

Many of the accomplishments Christie cited go back to his first years in office, including capping local property tax growth and cutting government spending.

During the speech at New Jersey's State House, Christie aimed at national issues as well as those in his state, and he noted lessons learned while traveling the country last year to campaign for Republican gubernatorial candidates.

"We are a nation beset by anxiety," he said. "It is understandable. Economic growth is low by post-war recovery standards. America's leadership in the world is called into question because of a pattern of indecision and inconsistency."

Christie's office said the speech in Trenton would serve as an opportunity to reintroduce the governor's accomplishments since he took office in 2010.

"This speech may be the first time a wider audience is hearing how he brought Democratic leaders to the table to achieve a series of big, bold reforms during the last five years," it reads.

Christie's speech comes as he's taken steps that suggest he's inching closer to a run.

He had said he planned to discuss his future with his family over the holidays and make a decision early this year. But pressure began mounting following an announcement by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush that he would be launching a fundraising operation.

Former GOP nominee Mitt Romney has also been telling supporters he is seriously considering running again.

In New Jersey, Christie is facing pressure to address several local issues.

He's promised for months to announce his proposals to further reduce pension and benefits obligations to state workers after scaling back promised payments into the pension system. And the state's Transportation Trust Fund, which pays for bridge and road repairs, is on the verge of bankruptcy.

Christie did not address the transportation trust fund in his speech.

Also, he talked about the importance of overhauling the system of pensions and health insurance for state and local government workers, but he did not issue specific solutions.

He did call on lawmakers to lower taxes, saying that New Jersey's high rates are the main reason Mercedes-Benz announced this month it was moving its U.S. headquarters to Atlanta despite incentives offered by New Jersey.

"It is you, and only you, the state Legislature, who can lower taxes further and make New Jersey more prosperous for our middle class families and their children," Christie said.

Christie reiterated that he would not increase income taxes. He has repeatedly vetoed legislative bills that would have raised taxes on the highest earners in the state.

Christie also continued with a theme he has repeated frequently: helping people who are addicted to drugs and eliminating the stigma they face. He called for better coordination of services for addicts.

He also reiterated his call for taxpayer funding for scholarships so low-income families can send their children to private schools, a concept that has bipartisan interest but has never made it through the Legislature.

In a sign of the interest in his remarks, national Democrats released a video Tuesday morning ahead of Christie's speech highlighting New Jersey's fiscal problems, including recent credit downgrades, and accusing Christie of putting himself ahead of the state.

"New Jersey Firstish," says the video, which was paid for by the Democratic National Committee.

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