I was honored to spend a few minutes yesterday—via
—catching up with my good friend Senator Cory Booker. It’s safe to say we go way back—I attended one of his events for Newark City Council.We talked about all that’s going on Washington, and the impact it’s having on everyday Americans in states like Ohio. Here are just a few snippets:
On the Big Ugly Bill:
“there’s never in the history of America been a bill like this…”
“there are things in this bill that are so against the common decency of this country…”
“it is the biggest transfer of wealth” in our nation’s history
“they’re going to be adding trillions of dollars to our debt”
“the cost of your health care is going up…the cost of your prescriptions is going up..now you’re getting that squeeze even more”
“a perfect storm of economic disaster creating more hardship and more crisis”
“as opposed to trying to make things easier for working in America, this bill is going to make things harder”
“it’s going to take away millions of jobs in America…it’s projected over 38,000 jobs [in Ohio] will be lost because of this”
Calling out Ohio’s JD Vance for casting the tie-breaking vote: “I don’t understand a guy like JD Vance…[being] the tip of the spear…to do something that would cause so much obvious damage to his own state….I don’t understand how a person who talks those values, who knows the data, would push so hard and be the tip of the spear that drives this bill….” — (I tried to explain why)
On the bill he (and Senator Padilla of California) just introduced to require ICE agents to display identity badges and remove their masks, for which Trump attacked him:
“every other law enforcement agency has to clearly identify that you are law enforcement”
ICE agents being unidentified “creates a very dangerous situation…We are already seeing…people now trying to commit crimes by dressing up as ICE agents. This is a vulnerability that is not necessary.”
We also got a large dose of some Cory Booker inspiration—which has helped keep me going all my career. Here are a few snippets:
the need to create communities of “purpose,” “healing and heart”
on patriotism: “show who you are by what you do for your nation”; “if you love your country, it is extraordinarily urgent that you call out what’s wrong with your country and then be part of trying to fix it”
“the poverty that bothers me most…is the poverty of empathy…is where people in power don’t what it’s like to struggle in this country and how hard it is for most Americans to try to make ends meet….”
“what Donald Trump wants you to think is that you’re not powerful….The people in a democracy are always the main character….[T]he power of the people is greater than the people in power….It’s gotta be us…choosing to do a little more…”
With so much weighing us down, take the time to listen to this conversation.
You’ll be glad you did.
And be sure to share it with others who need a lift.
