Chris Christie: Spending Cuts, Not Tax Increases

New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie says the answer to his state’s budget woes is spending cuts, not tax increases. And he’s not just walking the walk.

During a speech at the annual Goldwater Institute dinner in Scottsdale, Ariz., last week, he described his thinking after learning that the state faced a $2.2 billion budget deficit when he took office in January.

“I had two choices,” Christie says. “First, I could sit down with leaders of the Democratic Legislature and try to negotiate a way to cut $2.2 billion from the budget, knowing they were wringing their hands with glee that they would force the new governor to raise taxes.”

Second, “I could decide to impose $2.2 billion in spending cuts by executive order. “Which one do you think I picked?”