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Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) struggled to break into the primary Democratic primaries of 2020. He is campaigning on an ambitious message – love and unity in short – and his policy recommendations have been tend to be more pragmatic.
Cory Booker's full lineup was on display Wednesday night at a CNN public meeting in Orangeburg, South Carolina. He said that he would consider "absolutely" to consider making mass commutations and rehabilitations for federal marijuana offenses and touted his proposal for baby obligations. . He praised the Green New Deal for its visionary reach, comparing it to the Apollo missions on the Moon.
But he also focused on reducing drug prices instead of looking for single-payer, short-term health care to repair American health care.
Senator Elizabeth Warren recently asked Booker questions about the Electoral College, which interested her to withdraw to the plenary session of her city council. His answer is perhaps better than any mixture of hope and practicality of the New Jersey Senator: believe that the candidate who gets the most votes should win the presidential election, but for now, Democrats must work to win the White House under the current rules.
Here are 6 key moments from the town hall of Booker.
1) Booker would "absolutely" consider massive forgiveness for marijuana-related offenses
Booker played a leading role in criminal justice reform and drafted a bill in the Senate to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level, which was joined by several other Democratic candidates in 2020.
"There is no difference in America between using and even selling marijuana between blacks and whites. But if you're African-American in this country, you're almost four times more likely to be arrested for it, "said Booker Wednesday." And by the way, when we get arrested for marijuana in this country, Is like getting a life sentence Imagine that You now have a conviction for doing things that two of the last three presidents have admitted, and you are leaving now, and you can not get a commercial license. Not getting a job.You can not get a loan from a bank.It's like a phrase of a lifetime that compresses your economic well-being. "
CNN Facilitator Don Lemon asked Booker directly: Would he consider giving massive reprimands as president of those convicted of marijuana offenses and sentenced by the federal government?
"Absolutely," said Booker. "One of my goals as President of the United States will be to balance the scale of justice and build a criminal justice system that reflects our highest ideals."
2) Booker is frustrated by the debate over democratic reparations
Lemon also interviewed Booker about the reparations to be given to African-American families descended from slaves. As R.R. Lockhart of Vox recently reported, some 2020 Democratic candidates have been open to monetary compensation for these families, a sign of the party's growing progress on issues of race and structural inequality.
This is how Booker responded to Lemon's request for possible support for "direct monetary payments to black Americans who are descendants of slaves?"
Can I tell you why I am frustrated by this conversation about repairs? This is because it is reduced to what is strictly necessary to consult a presidential list while the conversation is so much more serious. Do I support legislation that is concerned with preserving the balance between economic balances and race? Not only do I support it, but I have a law that does it. In fact, I think one of the bills on the whole convention that, according to Columbia University, would virtually eliminate the racial wealth gap in our country. It's something that's called baby ties,
Booker pointed out that white supremacy was a dominant force in American history, while focusing on policies "not only trying to redress the economic scales of past wrongs, but also to make our country a more beloved community where everything is affirmed of each person. "
3) Booker wants to focus on reducing the price of drugs
Booker, who supported health insurance for all of Bernie Sanders but said he did not necessarily want to eliminate private health insurance, asked a question about health care. He reiterated that he thought that Medicare for all was ultimately the right solution, but he also explained that he would focus in the short term on additional measures to expand health coverage , such as lowering the age of eligibility for Medicare.
The senator, who has been closely monitored by the pharmaceutical industry, said he will focus on reducing prescription drug prices in his first year as president.
He is in favor of allowing Medicare to negotiate the price of drugs. Experts noted that the government should be willing to restrict access to certain drugs in order to achieve real savings. Booker also supports legislation allowing Americans to import drugs from other countries and revoking patents on certain drugs if drug manufacturers raise their prices above what foreign countries are required to pay.
"These drugs and expenses you're talking about are outrageous," Booker told a presenter. "Too many Americans have put aside life-saving medicines because they can not afford to buy them."
4) Impeach Trump? Booker wants to wait for Mueller's full report
Another audience member told Booker that she thought that President Trump should be dismissed regardless of the findings of Robert Mueller's investigation into a possible coordination with the Russian government. The senator has crossed a delicate line.
"I understand your sense of urgency and even your disgust at seeing what is coming out of the White House," he said.
But Booker said he wanted to see exactly what Mueller had discovered before commenting more on the dismissal. He said that the election of 2020 was the best chance to overturn Trump:
We should see this report and make our decisions accordingly. But that's what I'm going to hire right away. I will promise you that we will beat Donald Trump, that we will make sure that this nation, through the electoral process, sends it packing to the White House, because I think that a majority of Americans believe like you. and I hope to have the opportunity to lead us to this victory.
Lemon asked if Booker was involved or not in the dismissal.
"I do not think we should come to conclusions before seeing the report," said the senator, noting that other criminal investigations were ongoing on potential criminal activities.
5) Booker promises to fight NRA as president
A mother interviewed Booker about her plan to end gun violence, especially in schools, saying she was "terrorized" at sending her daughter to kindergarten. Booker, while endorsing popular proposals such as the universal background check, also promised to confront the White House's gun lobby:
It's so horrible that in America we have a mass shot every day because dozens of people are shot and killed. I am frustrated by politicians who, as best as they can, organize themselves to give thoughts and pray. Enough. Enough.
Booker noted that in the neighborhood where he lives in Newark, shots were fired recently. He said he was "tired" of attending funerals and pointed to the disproportionate number of African-American men killed in shootings in the United States.
"If I'm your president, we're going to bring the fight to the NRA, which wants to represent more the firearms owners of companies, the manufacturers, than it wants to represent the citizens, because that's what they do to the Americans, "Booker told me.
6) Booker seems open to change of constituency
Another question asked of Democratic candidates these days is whether they support the reform or elimination of the constituency, after Trump's (and George W. Bush's victory in 2000) victory, when Democrats won the popular vote but lost the election. Booker had the question and he seemed open to fundamental reforms.
"I very simply believe that in the presidential elections, the person who gets the most votes should be the president of the United States," he told CNN's acclaimed audience.
However, Booker implored participants to focus on winning the 2020 elections in accordance with the current rules.
"It's nice to hear this whole conversation, but we have about 595 days to win this election, and we're going to do it by spreading a lot of people," he said. "The cure for these undemocratic problems is not surrender. It's getting up, getting involved, getting involved and changing things. "
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