Cory Booker at Sessions Confirmation Hearing: Hey, look at ME!
Booker’s “historic” testimony against a fellow Senator was a brazen publicity stunt.
New Jersey Democratic Senator Cory Booker made “history” today by testifying against a fellow Senator — Jeff Sessions — in a confirmation hearing. I noted yesterday that This must mean Cory Booker is running for President in 2020
This was the first time such Senator against Senator testimony had ever happened. Booker tried to make it seem as if he was doing something heroic, as if the choice was between remaining completely silent or taking the witness stand:
“I believe … that in the choice between standing with Senate norms or standing up for what my conscience tells me is best for our country, I will alway choose conscience and country.”
That, of course, is a false choice. As a U.S. Senator, Booker has a big platform. When it comes time for a Senate vote, he can be heard and give a speech. There was nothing that set this nomination apart.
You would think Booker might have had something to say that had not already been said by Democrats a hundred times already. He didn’t.
You would think Booker might have had some personal anecdote which would have given him insight others didn’t have. He didn’t. Indeed, the only personal anecdote was positive, how Booker had worked closely with Sessions to pass legislation granting the Congressional Gold Medal to recognize those who marched in Selma on the Raymond Pettis Bridge in the famous civil rights march.
Instead it was same old, same old. Literally nothing new, startling or historic. It was just time in the spotlight.
If this signaled that Booker will run for President in 2020, then it’s a weak showing.
(added)
.@CoryBooker attacks on Jeff Sessions are so far-fetched I half-expected his make-believe friend T-Bone to be next witness.
— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) January 11, 2017
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Comments
Obama 2.0, we have been down that road and it was a extremely bad 8 years!
Oh look at me I am a big civil rights dude.
What a sick show! Stupid democratic talking points.
I hope there is a price for this stunt!
Booker is a lousy imitation of a lousy leader.
You left out GRIMY.
Wow – that was a nothing burger! There was no there there. Psst – Don’t pay attention to the man behind the curtain. What was the point of that?? That will have zero effect. It may even damage his presidential quest that he was willing to try to politically smear someone he just praised last year for being an excellent civil rights partner. Very easy to see it was all political not about prosecuting justice anyway.
He is a Democrat…of course this won’t hurt his Presidential aspirations. If nothing, this will bolster his credentials with the mfm who will fall over themselves to fellate him like they did Obama for the last 8 years.
That was worse than a nothingburger. I mean if you’re a sitting Senator about to take the unprecedented step of testifying against a fellow Senator at a confirmation hearing, at least have something dramatic like proof that he keeps a blind orphan locked in his kitchen or has his ex-wife buried in the back yard.
Booker’s testimony (summarized): Sen. Sessions is a nice man and I’ve worked with him on certain civil rights activities, but I can see the future and he won’t aggressively stalk and jail racists like AGs are supposed to do.
I wonder what flights of fancy he’s going to have inserted into the record afterward, ‘reserving his rights to revise’ that Senators tend to do. One thing I’d like to see (and never will) is the Congressional Record being required to only print that which really happened, and any ‘revise and extend’ gets stapled on the back with an indication of when it was added, instead of the Senator being able to just dive into their words with a pen and scissors.
He may not be able to revise what he said. He was not speaking on the floor of the Senate as a senator, he was appearing before a committee to provide testimony.
Even worse, that testimony is captured on video, which is not quite as easily revised as text.
(Paraphrased) “I recognize my time is up and I’d like to submit the rest of my testimony for the record.”
So yes, I was kinda-sorta wrong with the ‘Revise and extend’ part, but it does look like he gets to put into the record what he would like to have said instead of what he really said. Good thing we have video.
Just when you think they can’t sink lower, that you couldn’t possibly have any more contempt for them and what they stand for than you already have. I fear we will never find the bottom.
Thank you for that report Professor Jacobson. Concise, yet containing all the information I needed or wanted to know about Booker’s testimony today, I found it an interesting read.
Cory Booker comes off as an inauthentic opportunist, in the Obama mold. Guess he thinks he can capitalize, but would not be surprised or disappointed if his stunt backfires in the end.
Why is it invariably Democrats that break precedent in negative ways, are warned that it will come back at them, then lose their minds when others follow the example?
Booker is just another NJ idiot looking to advance to the WH having no particular skills. Christie could have done us all a big favor and filled that senate seat with a republican instead of holding a special election which got that moron elected.
Goes to show you what a bum Christie really is.
Trump was wise to kick him to the side of the road.
That was a very fine report. Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Trump v. Booker. Hmmm, who do you think the country let alone the world would love to see doing press conferences?
Sen. Schumer better watch out, someone else running to get in front of any nearby camera. They might collide with each other!
The whole purpose of Corey Booker’s speech was to try to keep the oppression racism narrative alive. He really said nothing which was negative with regards to Sessions; in fact, he seems to applaud him for co-sponsoring pro-civil rights legislation. This speech was simply an attempt to defend the abysmal record of the Obama administration on civil rights issues while charging that discrimination will run wild under the Trump administration. This was simply another Chicken Little attack on Trump.
Chicken Little or his troll seems to have shown up and gave you a thumbs down.
We had a Barry, don’t need a Corey.
Didn’t need a Barry either.
In acknowledgement of its weak bench, expect the Democrat Party to place its self-defined ‘up-and-comers’ in the limelight wherever possible, beginning here with Cory Booker (D-NJ), and we’ll likely see a lot of newly elected US Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA). Booker = right coast, Harris = left coast, you see.
Booker the hooker.
Schumer’s rino dog Marco Rubio also got into the act:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/01/11/tillerson-during-confirmation-hearing-says-russia-poses-danger-but-refuses-to-call-putin-war-criminal.html
Pretty lame try by Rubio. Regardless of what you think about Putin (and yes, I completely agree he’s a Bad Guy) it is insanity to try and get a brand new Sec of State to begin his stint in office by calling foreign leaders he’s going to have to talk to “war criminals”.
International politics is not the high school lunch room, where you can call the people you don’t like mean names and then snicker with your friends about it.
Huh. I thought it was good to deal with reality.
Like using the term “Islamist terror”. I guess not when it’s a T-rumpian.
Not up to your standards, Rags. “Islamist terror” is referring to a general description of a series of violent events, and is not a specific threat against any recognized government. “War Criminal” is a specific charge against a specific person, implying that the speaker might be willing to commit an act of war against the nation he leads just to bring him down. (Or else what is the point of calling someone a War Criminal?)
That is an incredibly inflammatory thing to do against any foreign leader, but especially against one with a nuclear arsenal in his metaphorical pocket.
Rubio just proved he isn’t qualified to be SoS or anything else that requires thought.
http://articles.latimes.com/2013/sep/26/nation/la-na-nn-cory-booker-stripper-20130926
The story is basically this: On Wednesday a BuzzFeed reporter — perhaps with sextually challenged New York politico Anthony Weiner on the brain — posted a story about Lee exchanging private messages with Booker, the bachelor mayor of Newark, N.J.
“Not safe for work, unless you work at Newark City Hall,” the BuzzFeed reporter gushed, then glued several nude photos of Lee into the very-not-safe-for-work story.
The private exchange with Booker, tweeted by Lee, was in February, after the mayor had done some characteristically goofy Twitter bantering with his followers.
Booker tweeted to his followers that he wanted to be president of New Jersey’s Star Trek club. Lee, who works at a vegan strip club in Portland, publicly tweeted at the ambitious mayor, “if you’re ever POTUS I call dibs on First Lady.”
Which is supposedly when the trouble begins…?
“And The East Coast loves you and by the East Coast, I mean me,” Booker is shown privately responding to Lee, who replied, “Well now I’m blushing. :)”
Twenty-three hours later, Booker responded, “It’s only fair.”
The end.
I admit, it’s been a lot of years since I have been to a strip club. What the hell is a “vegan” strip club?
The dancers are really REALLY skinny. No meat on their bones.
Ha.Ha. Good one, Henry!
Booker, a black Democrat liberal as president.
Thanks, but no thanks. We’ve been there; we’ve done that.
And they stole our T-shirts!
I wondered where mine went!
If you have nothing useful to say … say it anyway. A cardinal rule of elective office. They won’t vote for you if they’ve never heard of you. Which is why American politics consists of a few real developments almost entirely masked by noise. I foresee no change to that any time soon.
Cory Booker: Obama lite. Another empty suit. How’s Newark these days? I hear it’s a garden state paradise Cory. NOT!
The one difference between Booker and Obama I assume, is that Booker isn’t a muslim, and is DEFINTELY a U.S. natural born citizen.
Wow. The Dems move even closer to a single issue party. Race. And it shows me they terrified about the erosion of race based votes.
John Lewis’s testimony was probably worse than Booker’s. Although I respect his contribution of 50-60 years ago in support of Republican MLK against the racist democrats of the South, he has become a one trick pony. The context doesn’t matter–just wheel Lewis in and let him talk about what he did in the 60s. The fact that his testimony was completely irrelevant to the Sessions nomination is yet another example of democrat racism–they accuse Sessions of racism just because he’s a white guy from Alabama.
There are few people on this planet as dumb as John Lewis. His most amazing ability is to walk and talk at the same time. A professional Negro with no other qualifications on his resume.
Following Rules of Senate the Senate Should Censor Senator Cory Booker demanding apology, resignation or impeachment if neither happens in 30 days.. the Senate rules are clear since inception as character assassination is verboten by rules of Senate.
I respect John Lewis’ history in the civil rights movement, but he usually puts his foot in his mouth when he speaks-not just because of his speech defect but what he actually says. He is pathetic.
As for Booker, it is clear that he will run, and he will probably get the Democrat nomination.
Booker seems to be the heir apparent to the Joe Biden role in the Democrat Party. He cannot seem to step forward without stepping on his d**k.
If Booker was half as smart as he thinks he is, he would be dangerous.
Booker is one of the reasons NJ is such a shithole.
He could look in the mirror and see what’s wrong with America.