U.S. Sen. Cory Booker turned up the decibel levels for a few moments on the Senate floor Tuesday night as he ridiculed the thought that anyone in the U.S. Senate wants to defund the police.
The New Jersey Democrat’s theatrical moment, which has gone viral, came during an all-night Senate session as he debated an amendment by U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., to cut federal funding to municipalities that reduced funding for police departments.
“Opposing my amendment is a vote in support of Defunding the Police and against our men and women in blue,” said Tuberville.
Booker got up to speak, gleeful in the thought that Tuberville had up teed him up for a response.
“There’s some people who said there are members of this deliberative body that want to defund the police to my horror, and now this senator has given us the gift that, finally once and for all, we can put to bed this scurrilous accusation,” Booker thundered, his right arm slashing through the air with every word.
Booker said Tuberville’s remarks were such a gift, he would even walk over and hug the Republican if Senate rules permitted it.
He also suggested adding that every senator “believes in God, country and apple pie.”
The show took place in the early evening of an all-night debate on a budget resolution that would pave the way for congressional Democrats to pass a $3.5 trillion spending bill to address education, child care, health care and climate change, without the need for any Republican votes.
Separately, Booker is working with U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., on legislation to overhaul police practices following the deaths of George Floyd and other unarmed Blacks at the hands of law enforcement.
The House in March passed legislation named for Floyd that would to ban chokeholds, stop racial profiling, outlaw no-knock warrants, limit the use of deadly force and reduce the legal immunity police officers now enjoy, but the Senate does not have 60 votes to overcome a Republican filibuster.
Some Black Lives Matter protesters called for defunding the police, but that demand found no support among most congressional Democrats, including the leaders in both houses. Lawmakers instead defined the term as calling for investing more money in social programs rather than only increasing police budgets to address problems in communities.
Republicans successfully painted Democrats as anti-police as they won several key congressional races last fall, including New Jersey’s 2nd District race between Democratic-turned-Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew and educator Amy Kennedy.
Booker called on his fellow senators to “not walk but sashay down there and vote for this amendment and put to rest the lies, and I’m sure I will see no political ads attacking anybody here over defund the police.”
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Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him at @JDSalant.
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