Booker hits back at Trump tweet, mocks misspelling of name

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) blasted President Trump on Wednesday after he posted a tweet suggesting former Vice President Joe Biden would install Booker as Housing and Urban Development (HUD) secretary, misspelling the New Jersey senator’s name as “Corey.”

“Donaled, your racism is showing. -Cory,” the onetime presidential candidate tweeted Wednesday afternoon.

Donaled, your racism is showing.
-Cory https://t.co/jrHIoqJ8A2

— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) August 12, 2020

Trump on Wednesday continued his frequent attacks on Obama-era fair housing rules, tweeting “The ‘suburban housewife’ will be voting for me.”

The president went on to claim that as president, Biden would reimplement the rule “in a bigger form, with Corey Booker in charge!” While Biden has pledged to reinstate the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule, Booker has not expressed interest in the HUD post.

Most recent polling indicates that Trump trails Biden among suburban women, and the president has repeatedly claimed Biden represents a threat to the suburbs and their residents. On multiple occasions, he has also falsely claimed the former vice president seeks to “abolish the suburbs” as president.

He has also involved the “housewife” framing before, urging “Suburban Housewives of America” to read an op-ed in favor of repealing the AFFH rule. In July, he claimed that repealing the AFFH would ensure suburban families are not “bothered or financially hurt” by the presence of low-income housing in their neighborhoods.

The president’s claims also contradict HUD’s rationale for replacing the rule. While the department has said it was intended to give local governments more leeway in preventing discrimination, Trump has said the repeal keeps low-income housing from “invading” neighborhoods.