Politics

Christie to Obama: ‘What the hell are we paying you for?’ [VIDEO]

Christopher Bedford Senior Editor, The Daily Caller
Font Size:

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie had harsh words for President Barack Obama’s leadership abilities on Monday, following the failure of the super committee to come to a budget agreement.

“I was angry this weekend listening to the spin coming out of the administration about the failure of the super committee and that ‘the president knew it was doomed for failure so he didn’t get involved,’” the Republican governor said. “Well, then what the hell are we paying you for? ‘It’s doomed for failure so I’m not getting involved?’ What have you been doing, exactly?”

Blaming both parties for the impasse for “spending more time talking at each other than talking with each other,” Christie went on: “We all know what the solutions to these problems are — we’ve done them in New Jersey in many areas, but we don’t have the political will to get them done” in D.C., he stated, before offering some advice to the president.

“In New Jersey,” Christie said, “the reason that they got done is because I called people into the room and said we’re going to solve this problem. And I had people of good will on the other side who said they believed it was their obligation, regardless of party, to get done things like pension and benefit reform. That [Democratic] Mayor [Dana] Redd can tell you personally how much that’s helping her and her budget situation in Camden[, N.J.]. Why the president of the United States refuses to do this is astonishing to me.”

“If he wanted to run for Senate again and just be one of a hundred,” Christie concluded, “I’m sure he could have gotten re-elected over and over again in Illinois. When you’re president … well [you’re] the one in Washington, and he’s got to get something done here. And it’s not good enough to say, ‘Well, I’ll get it done after the election.’”

Watch:

Follow Christopher on Twitter