Cory Booker needs a moment that is unfamiliar to him



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What Booker needs is a real and authentic moment. And he knows what a non-genuine looks like because, well, he was there and did that.

At Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation hearings last fall, Booker published with great fanfare a series of emails dating back to Kavanaugh's time in the Bush administration and labeled "Committee confidential". About this decision, he said: "I think the penalty comes from a potential reversal of the Senate … it's about the closest moment of my life: a moment when I am "Spartacus".

Except that … it became clear later the same day that the emails in question had been approved for publication the night before – at Booker's request. Oomph.

Booker almost instantly became a figure of open mockery among Republicans and a more private image of Democrats. An ambitious politician who is so desperately seeking to create his momentum for his inevitable bid by 2020 that he crashes too much and crashes.

This swing-and-a-miss had the opposite effect, raising questions as to whether Booker was anything other than personified ambition – whether he had substance behind his style or not . Booker, perhaps because of this moment "Spartacus", remained largely unobtrusive in the months that followed, or at least as low as you can be when you announce your candidacy for the presidency.

Tonight's public meeting will be Booker's best chance since last fall to change the minds of many people about him. Or, at a minimum, start opening their minds to the possibility of supporting it. But any attempt to create a memorable moment will likely be viewed with skepticism, given the empty theatricality of his gesture at the Kavanaugh audiences.

Point: Booker's challenge is important – try to create a memorable moment without seeming to want.

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