Chris Christie in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on May 18, 2015 "Live Free or Die Is a Way Of Life"

Gov. Christie: Live Free or Die Is a Way Of Life

Governor Christie: But none of us, none of us should doubt our ability to lead in this new century. This can be the second American century.  And it must be.  We shouldn’t fear that challenge.

Our forefathers’ generation was called “The Greatest Generation” because they put their lives on the line to protect our way of life – and because they overcame every challenge put before them. They didn’t achieve greatness because the challenges were too few. It was because they faced many, and they dared to confront them head on.

It’s only, only when we dare to face the big challenges that we can achieve greatness. Courage is not the absence of fear – it is the presence of fear, but the will to go on fighting in the face of fear.

We have a chance today to face big challenges and to overcome them. We have a chance to follow in the footsteps of giants like our grandparents’ generation, and leaders like New Hampshire’s John Winant. He went to London during war in the service of his country. Now, we’ve been blessed with the strength and resources to go out and defend our way of life once again. And if we dare to do that, then we have a chance to be a great generation too.

It’s time for us to get to work, and to find our greatness again. Let’s go and do the big things, the really big things that lead America to another century of exceptionalism, and not ever a century of settling for second place in the world.

The world is waiting for us to lead everybody, time is running short, and together we can lead the world forward again. Being here in the shadow of this naval yard, and in a state that understands that "Live Free or Die" is not just a slogan, but it is a way of life. I am pleased to be here to talk about these issues, and I look forward to working with all of you to restore American greatness. Thank you very much.