TRENTON – Senate President Steve Sweeney issued the following statement congratulating Governor Phil Murphy and Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver after they were inaugurated as New Jersey’s 56th Governor and second Lieutenant Governor, respectively:
“Congratulations to Governor Murphy and Lieutenant Governor Oliver. We have a new era in New Jersey politics that offers the opportunity for real progress on the issues of importance that can move the state forward and help improve the lives of working families. It is also a time of enormous challenges that will require resourceful and realistic solutions.
“We have made real progress on important priorities in recent years, but political circumstances have changed in Trenton and Washington. We have a lot to be proud of, but we have a lot to do.
“With Democrats providing leadership in the Governor’s office and in both houses of the Legislature, we have the ability to act decisively on Democratic priorities which we have advocated for years. Working together with Governor Murphy, Assembly Speaker Coughlin and members of the Senate and Assembly, we will now get them done.
“As we work to address the state’s needs on a wide range of issues, it is important that Democratic leaders work together and with legislators from both parties to develop the most effective policies and practices. We won’t always agree, but we must maintain an open mind and an understanding of the political and fiscal conditions that confront us.
“We can make New Jersey a model for how to blend progressive values with fiscal responsibility to improve the lives of our citizens and to expand opportunities for everyone. I look forward to working together to move the state forward.”