Gov. Chris Christie may have ‘prayed’ for Hurricane Sandy, says state’s senate president

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie lays out preparation plans for Hurricane Sandy in October. (Mel Evans - AP)

In New Jersey, a storm is brewing over prayer.

Governor Chris Christie (R) may have “prayed a lot and got lucky because a storm came,” the state’s Democratic President Stephen Sweeney said Monday in a news conference. Sweeney was referencing Christie’s economic plan, which he said was buoyed by the damage to the state caused by Hurricane Sandy, which killed at least 120 people and caused an estimated $36.9 billion in damage in the Garden State.

From the Philly.com’s account of the conference:

Sweeney: We gave the governor a jobs package. We gave him one. He vetoed it. And his job package is a hurricane. I guess he prayed a lot and got lucky a storm came. I shouldn’t say that...I apologize for saying it.”

Despite Sweeney’s retraction, the governor’s office quickly put out a statement:

It was shocking to hear Senator Sweeney reduce Hurricane Sandy and its devastation to a heartless partisan attack. Ask the thousands of New Jerseyans whose homes or businesses were destroyed or damaged if they view Hurricane Sandy as a partisan political issue, or if this is what they want to hear from their leaders at this time of recovery as we fight for disaster aid in Washington.” .

“No one ‘prayed’ for what New Jersey has endured. This is politics at its worst and Senator Sweeney’s next press release should be to all residents of New Jersey saying he is ashamed of what he said today.”

The governor’s office also offered a fact sheet, which shows the extent of the damage to New Jersey by the October storm.