CHRIS CHRISTIE ACCUSES OBAMA OF ENCOURAGING LAWLESSNESS AND NOT SUPPORTING POLICE

On Face the Nation, N.J. Gov. Chris Christie accused President Obama of encouraging lawlessness by supporting Black Lives Matter

N.J. Gov. Chris Christie appeared today on CBS Face the Nation and slammed President Obama and Black Lives Matter for inciting hatred of the police.

Here is a transcript of what he said:

JOHN DICKERSON, HOST OF FACE THE NATION: Let me ask you this.

Governor of New Jersey, you deal with police and crime issues. FBI Director James Comey said something interesting. He suggested that police across the country may be more reluctant to crack down on crime because of what is the so-called Ferguson effect, named after the Michael Brown murder in Ferguson, Missouri. Do you see any of that in New Jersey, that reticence, because it's now become such a politicized issue?

GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE: I don't see it in New Jersey, because the leader of New Jersey tells the police officers to go out and do their job without exception.

DICKERSON: And they're doing it?

CHRISTIE: And they are. And you have seen it in a city like Camden, where, in the last three years, after we replaced the police department there, John, and backed them up completely, all the political folks, murder rate is down 61 percent in the last three years in Camden.

Yet you see murder is up 19 percent in Chicago and up 11 percent in New York, and the murder of a police officer. The problem is this. There's lawlessness in this country. The president encourages this lawlessness. He encourages it.

DICKERSON: Encourages it how?

CHRISTIE: Oh, by his own rhetoric. He does not support the police. He doesn't back up the police. He justifies Black Lives Matter. I mean...

DICKERSON: But Black Lives Matter shouldn't be justified at all?

CHRISTIE: Listen, I don't believe that that movement should be justified when they're calling for the murder of police officers, no.

DICKERSON: But they're not calling for the murder of police officers.

CHRISTIE: Sure, they are. Sure, they are. They have been chanting in the streets for the murder of police officers.

DICKERSON: Well, individuals have, but the Black Lives Matter is about...

CHRISTIE: Well, but, listen, you know, John, that's what the movement is creating. And the president of the United States is justifying that, but not only that. He hasn't backed up police officers from the minute he's gotten into office.

And we could cite instance after instance. And there's a lawlessness about most sanctuary cities. We should not have sanctuary cities in this country. The president countenances that. That type of lawlessness sets a tone. And then when you have liberal mayors like Bill de Blasio in New York, who are basically tying one hand behind the back of police officers, and then we have folks -- murder rate up 11 percent, police officers in New York City being murdered, let me tell you very clearly.

I will be a president who will back up law enforcement, back up the police officers, because I was a law enforcement officer. I know how hard these jobs are. And they need to be backed up.

When there are bad cops, they need to be prosecuted, like there are bad lawyers and bad doctors and bad engineers. They all need to be prosecuted when they do something wrong. But our police officers are putting their lives on the line every day. Let's back them up, so we can end the real violence in this country, which is happening in the streets of our cities all across this country.