- Chris
Christie « Press Release from Chris Christie for
President, Inc.
For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Gov. Hogan: I Officially and Enthusiastically Support My Friend Chris Christie for President
GOVERNOR HOGAN: Thank you
very much for coming. It’s
really my pleasure to welcome Governor Chris Christie back to Maryland
for, I think, the seventh time in less than a year. This is the first
time he’s been here as an announced candidate for President. And I’m
going to cut right to the chase and let you know that my - primary
mission here today is to officially, and enthusiastically endorse
Governor Chris Christie for President. I happen to believe that he’s
exactly the leader that we need. I think that he should be the next
President. And I think he will be the next President. And I’m going to
do everything in my power to help make that happen. We’re going to work
hard for him here in Maryland and any place else that he needs help
from us. We’ll go anywhere and do anything. I believe that, you know –
first of all just
let me on a personal note talk about – I would not be Governor of
Maryland if it were not for this guy right here. When nobody believed
in our race, he came in here four different times during the campaign
and really pushed us over the top. Then he came and spoke at my
inaugural, and did a great job. And I’ll say this, when the riots broke
out in Baltimore City, right after I made my state of emergency
address, the very first call I got was from Chris Christie, who offered
me all kinds of great advice. A couple of weeks ago when I announced
that I had cancer, one of the first calls I got was Chris Christie.
He’s been in communication with me almost everyday. And I was amazed,
as I was in the hospital getting chemotherapy, I get a text from him,
he says, I’m on my way to my announcement and I’m thinking of you and
praying for you. So he’s a tremendous
friend. A guy I have a tremendous amount of respect for. But that’s not
the only reason why I am endorsing him. I’m endorsing him because I
think he did a great job as the Governor of New Jersey. I think we need
a real leader. It has to be a Governor. I think those folks in
Washington have messed everything up. I have a lot of great friends
that are running for President. I know every one of these guys on the
Republican side, and I like a lot of them. But I can tell you, that in
my opinion, there’s nobody that has the strength of character, the
strength of leadership, the guy whose honest, who tells it like it is,
which is the thing I love about him. People say that I’m pretty blunt,
and I always say exactly what I think. Well, that’s probably why we are
kindred spirits, because he does the same thing. Most politicians don’t
do that. So without
further a due. I just wanted to say I’m extremely excited about the
prospect of Chris Christie as the next President of the United States.
Thank you, Governor.
CHRIS CHRISTIE:
Well, it is great to be back in Maryland and great to be here with your
Governor. I will tell you that I have never been prouder than I was
watching Governor Hogan in the hours and days after the problems in
Baltimore. It reinforced every instinct that I had about what kind of
leader he would be if Maryland gave him the chance to be Governor. He
left Annapolis, he went on the scene in Baltimore, he worked with all
the different community groups, with law enforcement, with everybody
that needed the leadership then, to know that Baltimore was going to
work it’s way back to be the great city that it is. And that’s one
thing that he’s accomplished already in six months as Governor of
Maryland. Restoring fiscal stability to the state, and making people
feel proud again. The fact that they have a Governor who is willing to
stand up for them. It was great, walking through
this diner we had a couple whose small business owners who say to him,
Governor Hogan we are small business owners, thank you, you have
already helped us. That’s the reason that I came here to help and
support Governor Hogan back last year, because I knew what kind of
Governor he would be. And that’s why I am so honored today to have his
support and his endorsement. It makes a difference, it makes a real
difference when those people that have the same job you have, who face
the same kinds of challenges, look at you and say that they think that
you have the leadership capabilities and the ideas to help to lead our
country. And so I’m extraordinarily honored to have Larry’s support, to
have his endorsement. And we’re going to work hard together to bring
this message across the entire country. On a personal note, from me and
from Mary Pat. You’ve watched
the real courage that he has shown as he is facing his own personal
challenges. And never once complaining about anything. You know, he
says I texted him on the way to my announcement, I did because I was
thinking of him. He’s in the hospital undergoing chemotherapy, he’s
texting back right back, like right back with his ideas, with his
encouragement, with his support. This is somebody who the people in
Maryland are getting to know even better. And you do get to know people
even better when they are under real challenge. And so I have complete
confidence in the fact that he will take this on like he’s taken on
every challenge in his life. And I’m not giving him any time off. We’re
going to work across the country together to bring our message. And we
are looking forward to bringing a greater sense of leadership and
purpose to this country. And we need it
very, very badly right now. And so I thank Larry for his support, and I
think we are available to take a few questions if you have them.
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