MSNBC Democrats mock Cory Booker's 'political theater' stunt on the Senate floor
Booker accused his fellow Democratic senators on Tuesday of aligning themselves with Trump because they are in favor of passing new police legislation. He claimed that without amendments, the legislation would allow the president to pick winners and losers in terms of who receives the benefits.
"That is complicity with an authoritarian leader who is trashing our country," Booker said. "It is time for Democrats to have a backbone. It's time for us to fight. It's time for us to draw a line, and when it comes to the safety of my state being denied these grants, that's why I'm standing here."
Panelists of MSNBC's "Morning Joe" were not impressed.
"Well, it's great theater that we just saw. Cory Booker, a good guy, standing up and yelling on the floor of the United States Senate," MSNBC contributor Mike Barnicle said on Wednesday. "What I don't understand is he's yelling at two other Democrats. The Democrats have enough problems in this country defining themselves to people, making sure people know they are alive, they are interested in your life, they are interested in you, solving problems."
MSNBC analyst and former Democratic senator Claire McCaskill argued that Booker is simply playing to the desires of the Democratic Party's base.
"Here's what's going on. The Democratic base is starving for a fighter. They're starving for a fight," she said. "They want people to fight Donald Trump, because everyone is so frustrated and angry and depressed at everything he's doing and how he's doing it, and the cowardice of the Republicans across the aisle in the Senate who are knowingly doing terrible things and casting votes that I would never dreamt they would have cast, when I was serving with them in the Senate."
But there's another key aspect to this as well, she said, defending Democrats like Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., as people trying to do the best they can under the Trump administration.
"On the other side, you have Cory Booker unfairly criticizing two strong Democrats that are doing everything they can in their power to fight Donald Trump. And, you know, Amy's right. There's a way to change a bill. And then there's a way to get in the opening segment of 'Morning Joe' and on the front page of The New York Times. And Cory chose the latter, rather than the former," she said. "He knew if he did this, it would be a viral moment, and he would be associated with Democrats who are willing to fight."
"Meanwhile, this bill didn't impact funding, and there probably was not the leverage to do what Cory would like to do, which is defy Donald Trump, because we don't have the votes in the Senate," McCaskill said.
She later added, "Cory knows we don't have the votes in the Senate to do what the base wants us to do. So the way he criticized his colleagues is really unusual, kind of unheard of, and frankly, to me, a little worrisome, with what we have in front of us and the fights we have to — the Democratic Party needs to wage next year in the midterms."
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