New Jersey Governor Chris Christie on
Tuesday threw his hat into the race for the White House, becoming the
14th Republican to do so.
Christie made his announcement at his
alma mater, Livingston High School, in Livingston, New Jersey, where
he said he's “now ready to fight for the people of the United
States of America.”
From the school's gymnasium, Christie
said that he picked his home town because “everything started here
for me.”
“When I decided to make this
announcement, there was no other choice. I had to come home. And
Livingston is home for me.”
Christie promised to be a “strong”
leader: “America is tired of hand-wringing and indecisiveness and
weakness in the Oval Office. We need to have strength and decision
making and authority back in the Oval Office. And that is why today
I am proud to announce my candidacy for the Republican nomination for
president of the United States of America.”
Like all of his Republican rivals for
the GOP nomination, Christie does not support marriage equality.
(Former New York Governor George Pataki has not publicly stated his
position on the issue, saying only that the issue of marriage should
be left up to the states. As governor, he signed a gay protections
bill.)
(Related: GOP
presidential candidates decry gay marriage ruling.)
In October, Christie, who was in office
when New Jersey's ban was declared unconstitutional, said that states
should be allowed to decide whether gay couples can marry and was
opposed to a Supreme Court ruling striking down state marriage bans.
“I do not believe that this is
something that should be imposed from the United States Supreme Court
down to the states,” he said.
In 2012, Christie vetoed a bill
approved by lawmakers that sought to allow gay couples to marry in
the state. The following year, the state's highest court struck down
the state's ban.