Booker is latest Dem to seize spotlight

When Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) lashed out against Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen this week, he became the latest potential 2020 presidential candidate to use a high-profile Senate committee hearing to amplify their stature. 

Booker mostly got what he wanted: his fiery questioning of Nielsen at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday played on loop across the cable networks and fired up the conversation around his would-be candidacy.

Booker, 48, tore into Nielsen for saying she did not recall President Trump using the term “shithole” to describe certain countries in a White House meeting on immigration last week. 

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“Your silence and your amnesia is complicity,” Booker said, raising his voice and clenching his fists. At the same time, his moment in the spotlight carried some risks.

Republicans used the opportunity to lambast him for “mansplaining” — taking a page from the playbook Democrats have used against Republicans in recent months. 

For the rest of the week, the Republican National Committee (RNC) referred to Booker as “Derogatory Cory.” 

National Review, the conservative publication, said Booker’s “rant exposed the left’s gender hypocrisy.” 

Still, the rewards of the viral moments can outweigh the risks, strategists say. And with more than half a dozen Senate Democrats potentially wading into the 2020 waters, senators have tried to use whatever moments they can to insert themselves into the national conversation. Nearly every week, those considering runs for the White House use the well of the upper chamber and televised committee hearings to boost their profiles and secure name recognition beyond their home states. 

While Booker attempted to get his name in television lights this week, his colleagues have also had their moments — each trying to get further to the left to appeal to the Democratic Party’s base. 

Last month, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) was at the center of the national conversation after she became one of the first female senators to call for former Sen. Al Franken’s (D-Minn.) resignation on the heels of sexual assault allegations. She only gained favor with Democrats when she went after Trump, saying he should also resign from office amid sexual assault allegations by more than a dozen women. 

Last year, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) made headlines when she was shushed by Republican senators at two different hearings after a bold line of questioning. Her moxie immediately got the attention of some Democratic donors.  

Early last year, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) took to the floor of the Senate to read a letter from Coretta Scott King — only to be interrupted by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). 

McConnell said he had warned Warren that her remarks about past statements by then-Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who Trump had nominated to be attorney general, had breached Senate rules.

“She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted,” McConnell said, in effect creating a rallying cry for Democrats tailor-made for a 2020 bumper sticker if Warren decides to run for president. 

“It’s not a bad strategy,” Democratic strategist Christy Setzer said of Democrats seizing the spotlight.

“Our last Democratic president was known for his inspiring oratory, so why not follow in those footsteps?” Setzer continued. “It’s too early to start giving lofty speeches in Iowa though, and the Senate floor is as good a place for national attention right now as any.” 

Tobe Berkovitz, a professor of communications at Boston University, agreed. 

“The Senate is the perfect forum for shiny moments, and if the cable networks pick it up, you can get some leverage with it,” he said. “And if you’re really lucky you’ll be the topic of conversation on Anderson Cooper or you’ll be invited to ‘Morning Joe.’ ” 

“The Senate is historically where political greats make great speeches,” Berkovitz added. “The secret is, can you deliver a political campaign warmup speech without it becoming overtly a political campaign warmup speech? It’s easy to overplay your hand.”

Even Democrats acknowledged that Booker was playing for the cameras at the hearing. “You’d have to be blind not to see it,” one Democratic strategist said. A website from the Garden State, NJ.com, mentioned the appearance as part of their story on “7 Signs Cory Booker is Getting Ready to Run for President.” 

All week, the RNC made the point that Booker’s performance was contrived. 

“He got his 15 minutes of fame from his Razzie-award worthy performance on Tuesday,” Michael Ahrens, a spokesman for the RNC, said in an email to reporters.  

In a separate email to The Hill, Ahrens called Booker “a self-promoting showboat.”

“No one took him seriously a week ago, and no one is taking him seriously now,” he said. 

Booker’s office did not respond to requests for comment. 

Democrats largely felt Booker did what he needed to do and scored some political points for his heated remarks. 

Democratic strategist David Wade, who served as former Sen. John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) chief of staff, said each senator who is contemplating a run should “use all the tools they have.” 

Still, “you can’t force the moment,” Wade said. “It demands purpose. Purpose is knowing what a senator’s desired profile is and what lane they occupy. Democrats want to see who can stand up to Trump and who knows how to fight.”