Sen. Booker: Biggest Mistake Democratic Party Has Made Is ‘Not Centering People Enough’

Democrats’ Oversight and the Rise of Populism

The most significant oversight Democrats have made is “not centering people enough,” declared Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., during a Sunday interview.

“A lot of people voted for Donald Trump because they trusted him and didn’t trust that Democrats could deliver for them,” Booker explained to ABC’s “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos. “We find ourselves in a situation where the Democratic Party needs to take responsibility. We paved the way for this demagogue to rise to power. The solution lies in correcting our mistakes by focusing more on American voices and people, rather than politics.”

Booker’s Marathon Speech: A Call for Change

Booker’s remarkable 25-hour-and-4-minute speech, which concluded last Tuesday evening, made history as the longest speech on the Senate floor. He protested against what he described as a national crisis, attributed to President Donald Trump and adviser Elon Musk. This surpassed the previous record set by Sen. Strom Thurmond, who filibustered the Civil Rights Act for 24 hours and 18 minutes in 1957.

Throughout his lengthy speech, Booker emphasized that Democrats need to improve.

“I confess that I have been imperfect. I confess that I’ve been inadequate to the moment,” Booker admitted on Tuesday. “I confess that the Democratic Party has made terrible mistakes that gave a lane to this demagogue. I confess we all must look in the mirror and say ‘we will do better.'”

Booker clarified to Stephanopoulos that the action he intended with his speech should not be misconstrued as partisan politicking.

“This is not about the Democratic Party, I’m sorry,” Booker emphasized. “The Democratic Party is at its weakest when it’s concerned about the party. It’s at its strongest when it’s concerned about the people, when it’s bigger and broader than any narrow, political analysis. This is the time for Americans to step up.”

Protests and Public Sentiment

Tens of thousands of “Hands Off” protesters rallied in more than 1,200 cities nationwide on Saturday, voicing their opposition to the Trump administration’s cuts to the federal workforce and other policies, according to organizers.

“I’m just grateful, especially yesterday, to stand in solidarity with millions of Americans who are just really determined, even though they themselves are tired, to keep fighting,” Booker expressed.

Here are more highlights from Booker’s interview:

Booker on Trump’s Tariffs

Stephanopoulos: Let’s talk about some of the issues that Americans were responding to, including, of course, the tariffs. You heard Kevin Hassett earlier in the program. He said there may be some increase in prices, but it’s going to be worth it. Your response?

Booker: God bless Kevin, but I’ve never seen an administration in my lifetime do something so monumentally wrong and that so staggeringly hurts American people. I’ve been hearing all day yesterday, from frightened Americans who’ve saved for their entire lives, for retirement in the coming months, but now know they can’t because in one fell swoop, Donald Trump has devastated their retirement accounts, their 401(k)s… This president is pushing, yet again, a plan to gut basic services to give bigger and bigger tax cuts to the wealthy. So the chaos he has unleashed on America, the financial insecurity that he has brought to people’s lives, this is not what he promised people, and I think he will already go down for a president having the worst first 100 days in the last century of any president that’s ever taken that office.

Booker on Targeting Law Firms and Universities

Stephanopoulos: You also saw Jon Karl’s piece about the president’s retribution campaign, he promised to be the retribution during the campaign. We’re seeing these moves against universities. We’re seeing these moves against law firms. You took the Senate floor to protest. What should these law firms and universities do?

Booker: Well, first and foremost, you’re calling retribution, but it’s something far worse than that. If you look around the world, from Viktor Orban to Vladimir Putin, this is not what democratic leaders do. This is really a violation of our constitutional principles, that he’s using that power of that office, not to advance noble causes that could help the American people, whether I disagree with them or not, that’s what a president is called to do, do what they think is in the best interests of the public at large. What this president is instead doing is violating our constitutional principles, violating the fundamental rights of people in order to punish them, to carry out his own retribution plan. You know, John F. Kennedy famously said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” Donald Trump is now saying, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for Donald Trump to make amends. He is trying to hurt people, to make them cower to him and offer him tribute in order to not violate the Constitution and hurt them economically. This is something that should not just be about a bunch of law firms. This is something that should ultimately be about Americans.