Governor Christie: When Camden's Successful, So Is New Jersey

Statement

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When I got out of the car today Dana said, welcome back to your city. And I'm here more than I'm in any other city in New Jersey. And so as I've been here I can not only get reports, but I've watched, myself, the change in the atmosphere in this city driven by the community policing that's going on by the Metro Division each and every day and the interaction with the citizens. You can see it as you drive around this city, you can feel it as you drive around this city. None of that happens without strong leadership, and Chief Thomson you've provided that leadership with the men and women of your division and I thank you very, very much for what you're doing. There's a whole bunch of other stuff they wrote down for me to say but everybody else already said it, all before me. That's the danger of going last. So I'm not looking at the paper, I'm just telling you that I know we have lots more work to do. But there's no penalty for standing up and appreciating what's already happened even when there's more work to be done. We need every once and a while to remind ourselves that we're making progress and that things are going better. And I've been here, both as U.S. Attorney and now as Governor, in times that were pretty dark and dangerous and sad in this city. And these are not those times. I've been involved with the city of Camden now for 12 years as the Chief Law Enforcement Officer on the federal level in this state and now as the Governor. And I can tell you that I have never seen a more hopeful time based not on words but on deeds, in this city's history in the last 12 years. So we have a lot more to do. Let's not waste this moment or this opportunity. We could do it together. What you need to know is that the state, as long as I'm Governor, is going to be here as an active participant, supporter, funder, cheerleader and partner in making this happen. When Camden becomes more successful, prosperous, safe and educated, New Jersey becomes more prosperous, safe, educated, and hopeful.

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