UNION TOWNSHIP — Gov. Chris Christie revived his town hall meetings today, returning to a mantra that lawmakers are not acting on his agenda. Christie blasted lawmakers for not taking up a package of bills he began discussing last year, including measures that would require lawmakers to disclose their income and would make public employee unions have to abide...
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Gov. Chris Christie takes questions at a town hall appearance in January in Chesilhurst. Today, the governor resumed his town hall tour by visiting Union Township in Union County.UNION TOWNSHIP — Gov. Chris Christie revived his town hall meetings today, returning to a mantra that lawmakers are not acting on his agenda.
Christie blasted lawmakers for not taking up a package of bills he began discussing last year, including measures that would require lawmakers to disclose their income and would make public employee unions have to abide by "pay to play" restrictions.
Christie took a break from his town hall meetings for the summer, holding his last public gathering in June, before the Legislature passed an overhaul of the pension and benefit systems for public employees. A small crowd of firefighters from Union and Cranford protested outside the meeting, but Christie entered through a back door.
The governor's prepared remarks for the town hall changed since the last time he held an event, shifting away from talking about pension and benefit legislation that ultimately passed. But that doesn't mean he stopped berating lawmakers for not enacting his proposals.
Christie asked the attendants to contact their lawmakers and urge them to pass the transparency legislation he is pushing.
"I need your help to do this," Christie said. "I can't do it by myself. We need to work together to get things done in this state."
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