Christie: Congress 'a little late' with Sandy aid

Christie reminded an overflow audience at his 100th town hall that he called out House Speaker John Boehner for delaying a vote on aid to the devastated Northeast. But the governor was in better spirits Wednesday after the House voted to send $50.5 billion to storm-battered states. A prior vote allocated $9.7 billion to pay flood insurance claims.

"A little delayed, a little late to the party," Christie said of Tuesday night's vote. "But if you're coming with $60 billion, you can be a little late."

Christie said the aid will help New Jersey begin rebuilding in earnest after the late October superstorm, the worst natural disaster in New Jersey's history, which caused $36.9 billion in damage and rebuilding costs. The governor said he expects the Jersey Shore to be largely rebuilt by 2014, but cautioned against unrealistic expectations for the upcoming tourist season.

"There simply isn't enough time between now and the Fourth of July, say, to get everything done, for everybody's homes to be rebuilt, for every business to be up and running again, for all the beaches to be replenished," said Christie. "What we're hoping to do for this coming summer is to make the Jersey Shore functional and livable again."

Christie returned to the Shore community of Manahawkin, the gateway to hard-hit Long Beach Island, for a town hall that attracted more than 1,000 residents, some whose homes were damaged by the storm.