Cory Booker All-Night Senate Speech Calls for Action in Times of Crisis

Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey launched into a marathon speech on the Senate floor on Monday evening, an effort that stretched well into Tuesday morning as he sought to protest actions taken by the Trump administration. Booker’s remarks, beginning at 7 p.m.ET, were not a normal filibuster because he wasn’t trying to stop a specific bill or candidate.

Instead, Booker used his stage to talk about how worried he was about the way the country was going under President Trump. He said he would keep speaking “as long as I am physically able.” People thought that the speech was a direct answer to the rising demands of the Democratic base for politicians to take a stronger stance against the Trump administration.

Cory Booker, who is in charge of the Democrats in the Senate, made his speech sound like a reaction to a national emergency. “In just 71 days, the president of the United States has inflicted so much harm on Americans’ safety; financial stability; the core foundations of our democracy,” Booker declared. “These are not normal times in America. And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate.”

Although not a procedural filibuster, Cory Booker’s speech had a similar disruptive effect. While Senate votes had concluded before Booker took the floor, his continued speech kept the Senate floor open and the chamber’s staff engaged through the night. It also brought the attention of Capitol police, who were tasked with ensuring security as Booker continued his remarks.

 

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Throughout the night, Cory Booker addressed a wide range of issues, from the Trump administration’s disregard for the rule of law to the potential cuts to Medicaid proposed by Congressional Republicans. While Republicans have maintained they will not cut Medicaid, they have suggested targeting waste, fraud, and abuse, with vague plans for deep spending cuts.

Booker was very worried about how these cuts would affect American families, especially those who depend on Medicaid for medical care. At a very moving time, Cory Booker talked about the late Senator John McCain and how important it was that McCain voted “no” on the GOP health care bill in 2017.

He lamented the ongoing struggle in the Senate to address the health care crisis, comparing the current moment to the turmoil over health care policy that had gripped the Senate years earlier. “It is maddening in this country to create a greater and greater health care crisis and for us not to solve it,” Booker said. “I can’t believe we are here again.”

His voice grew louder as he passionately implored his colleagues to heed the lessons from McCain’s vote against the GOP’s proposed health care overhaul. At various points during his speech, Cory Booker fielded questions from fellow Senate Democrats, including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester.

Schumer praised Booker for his “strength and conviction,” highlighting the senator’s dedication to exposing what he saw as damaging policies that would hurt the middle class, the poor, and the country as a whole. Booker, in turn, took a moment to reflect on the support he received, particularly from Blunt Rochester, who had prayed with him before he began his speech.

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Cory Booker’s act of “disrupting the normal business” of the Senate was, in his own words, an attempt to draw attention to the struggles of the American people and to stand in solidarity with those who face the brunt of policy decisions made in Washington.

Booker used the words of civil rights leader John Lewis to explain what he was doing: it was “good trouble” meant to bring attention to the wrongs he saw happening in the current political climate. Even though it was long and difficult, his message showed that he believes in standing up for what he thinks is right, even if it means breaking Senate rules.