If we make the tough decisions now, we will be one year ahead of 80 percent of the states in the race to economic growth. If we fail to act, we will fall even further behind... by going first, we can become first.

I believe in my heart that I am ready to work to restore America to its rightful place in the world.

The biggest anxiety is just about America's role in the world. People are feeling very unsafe. They really are. They're just wondering whether, anything can be done to try to stabilize the world a little bit.

Today we must make a pact with each other to end this reckless conduct with the people's government.

This is a president [Barack Obama] who came into office in 2008 with a big majority in the House and with a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Because of his policies and his conduct in office, seven years later, we have our largest majority in the House since 1928, and we have a majority in the Senate and we have 31 of the 60 governorships.

I think the presidency is much too serious a thing to just play politics with.

I absolutely believe that, come November 2012, I'm going to be governor of New Jersey and not in any other office. But the fact of the matter is, if Gov. Romney, who's going to be our nominee, picked up the phone and called me to talk about this, I love my country enough and I love my party enough to listen.