Cory Booker Blames Both Trump and New Jersey for Newark Airport Chaos
Perhaps surprisingly, New Jersey senator Cory Booker isn't just blaming Donald Trump for the recent problems at Newark International Airport. During a recent interview on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!,' the politician pointed to both infrastructure failures and Trump for the much mocked airport.
'So you're telling me that it's not necessarily Trump's fault, this situation we have in Newark?' Kimmel asked the New Jersey politician.
'I'm telling you candidly, it's both,' Booker said. 'We have deferred infrastructure improvements that we should not have. But when Trump came in and DOGE and Elon Musk began firing key safety officials for the FAA, began laying off key personnel — one of the biggest issues right now is a personnel issue in addition to the technology issue.'
Earlier this months, hundreds of flight cancelations and delays at Newark caused Democratic Minority Leader of the Senate Chuck Schumer to call for an investigation into the cause. It was eventually found that several compounding issues led to the widely mocked delays, including staffing shortages when it came to air traffic controllers, aging technology, the airport closing its busiest runways and bad weather. While on Kimmel's show, Booker also noted that the infrastructure for U.S. airports is the same technology that was used when his grandparents were alive.
'This is the president who said he was going to keep us safe by firing health officials, by firing FAA officials, by firing the people who inspect our food,' Booker continued. 'This man has patently made us less safe as a nation. And this is an example he contributed.'
That was far from the only shot Booker took at Trump on Wednesday night. The senator also called the president 'the greatest grifter to ever be in the White House' and appeared shocked that Trump is 'doing it out in the open.'
'He has made billions of dollars since he's been in office by grifting off of that public position, and it's disgusting. There's very little accountability if Congress won't do what Congress was designed to do, which is to offer checks and balances to the presidency,' Booker said. Watch the full ABC interview above.
The post Cory Booker Blames Both Trump and New Jersey for Newark Airport Chaos | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
11 minutes ago
- Axios
Good economic news can't catch a break
America is so far defying the gloomiest economic forecasts, but tariff threats keep scrambling the good news. Why it matters: Inflation is at a four-year low, consumer sentiment might be on the mend and the stock market has recovered from its post- "Liberation Day" lows — but it's all being overshadowed by intensifying China trade tensions. State of play: President Trump signaled Friday that the U.S.-China trade truce, a deal that effectively reopened trade between the world's two largest economies in May, might be in danger. "The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!," Trump wrote on Truth Social. Friction point: The big economic threat is that tariffs ramp up, instead of the de-escalation and new deals that the White House has indicated and Wall Street expects. Economists don't expect price pressures to seep into the data until the summer months. Retailers are rolling through inventory stockpiled before the worst of the tariffs took effect. The irony is that two consumer sentiment surveys this past week showed consumers started to feel good about the economy of late — or at the very least, did not feel worse — after the administration lowered tariffs on Chinese goods. The University of Michigan's closely watched consumer sentiment index held steady in May. Sentiment is still near the lowest level ever, but the data ended four straight months of the index falling off a cliff. The Conference Board noted a huge surge in its index as well. Consumers are tying their economic fortunes to trade — and nothing else. "Despite the many headlines about the tax and spending bill that is moving through Congress, the bill does not appear to be salient to consumers at this time," the University of Michigan said in a release. What to watch: So far, Trump's trade drama has played out against a largely favorable economic backdrop. But there are early signs that backdrop might be shifting. Consumers pulled back on spending last month, choosing to sock away their income, rather than buy things. Separate data this past week showed the most recurring unemployment filings since November 2021, a indication that jobs are getting harder to find.
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Conservative lawyer: Attacks on judges are about ‘Trump getting what he wants'
As unfavorable court rulings pile up against the Trump administration, The White House continues to undermine public confidence in the judiciary. George Conway and Kimberly Atkins Stohr join The Weekend to discuss.
Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
CA track meet spotlight should have been on competition, not shaming
Finally, the charade of President Donald Trump and other politicians pretending to care about girls' sports is over with Saturday night's closing of the 2025 California Interscholastic Federation Track & Field Championships at Buchanan High's Veterans Stadium. Well, I hope it's over. I have covered the state track meet off and on since 1979 when I traveled to Berkeley to cover the event for The Bakersfield Californian. I don't recall any politician showing up and cheering for the female competitors. I was there last year, and I'm sure Fresno County Supervisors Garry Bredefeld and Nathan Magsig didn't attend a press conference to promote the girls taking part in 17 track and field finals. This year's edition of a sporting event that draws more than 1,500 boys and girls would likely have come and gone with little notice if not for Trump threatening on Tuesday to withhold federal funds for California if the state track meet included a transitioned girl from Riverside County. 'In the meantime I am ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals,' the president posted on Truth Social. 'This is a totally ridiculous situation!!!' What is ridiculous is that the transitioned girl has followed the rules, which have allowed transitioned girls to compete at the high school level since 2013. The CIF did amend its rules for a pilot program to allow any biological girl that was displaced by a trans girl to compete at the state meet. The CIF also released a statement on Wednesday: 'A biological female student-athlete who would have earned a specific placement on the podium will also be awarded the medal for that place and the results will be reflected in the recording of the event.' The pilot program sounds a bit confusing, but blame it on the politicos who should get a gold medal for spotting a microphone and television camera. Saturday, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Steve Hilton spoke at a press conference outside Veterans Stadium where he blasted the state policy that allows trans girls to compete. All the noise – and the extra dose of media attention – is misguided. Last year, finding a place at the media table was no problem. Saturday, the area was inundated by media drawn not so much by the sport of track and field, but by a 16-year-old performer who drew the wrath of Trump. Authentic track and field supporters would show up to cheer for Giselle Fernández of Riverbank High in the 1,600-meter race. Or Khaliq Muhammad of Pittsburg High in the pole vault. Or the Herbst twins (Morgan and Makenna) from Carlsbad. Only those stuck in the Middle Ages would dare root against the trans athlete. The real attention should have been on the competitors named above and others, who transform the California state meet into the best in the nation. Fernández and Riverbank have been a perfect match for the state finals. The senior didn't match her brother Germán's 2008 state double in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters that people still talk about, but Giselle proved she deserves a shot at the title by improving her personal mark in the 1,600 by more than 10 seconds. She placed sixth Saturday in 4:43.8. Does having her brother, who still holds the state record in the 1,600 with a 4:00.9 time, help? Of course, said Giselle, who was a year old when her brother won his state titles. 'My brother has connected with many people that are now professionally running, and that's given me benefits,' said Giselle. 'I'm not finished here. I think next year I can improve even more.' Muhammad is another state competitor with a pedigree. His older sister, Jathiyah, won the girls state pole vault last year. Their father, Gary, is a pole vault coach at Pittsburg. Khaliq dominated the boys pole vault, clearing a personal-best 17-10½ and besting the meet record by half an inch. He missed a try at 18 feet, ½ inch before calling it a day. 'I was tired,' he said. 'I knew I was going to win. I had confidence in my ability to win,' said Muhammad, who credits his father for his success. 'He's been my coach for 12 years, ever since I started.' Morgan Herbst shattered the meet record in winning the girls 300-meter hurdles (39.64 seconds), while sister McKenna won the girls 800-meter race less than a quarter-second off the meet record (2:02.28). I could mention many other athletes who deserve the attention at claiming a medal on a 100-degree-plus day. That is where the focus of this state meet should have been all along.
