Presidential candidate Cory Booker on Saturday urged fellow Democrats not to be distracted by vitriol directed at the party’s candidates by the man whom they seek to replace.
Asked during a Charleston, S.C., town hall meeting how best to oppose President Donald Trump without running an overly negative campaign, the New Jersey senator said Democrats need to look inward and focus on issues important to many of them, such as health care and education.
“We have got to understand this is not about him, it’s about us, and we should not be motivated by what we are against by what we are for as a country,” Booker said.
As other Democratic hopefuls campaigned in early voting states, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont made Brooklyn the official launch site of his second run for the White House, telling supporters that his campaign is tailor-made to defeat Trump. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts courted voters in Iowa while Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio visited South Carolina. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota represented Democrats at the annual Gridiron Club dinner in Washington, an event where politicians traditionally poke fun at the press and other politicians.
Trump spoke to a gathering of conservatives in suburban Maryland, mocking Democrats for their framework to combat climate change and saying that House Democrats pushing to expand their investigations of him are “sick.” Highlights of Saturday’s campaigning:
CORY BOOKER: Taking questions from a diverse crowd, Booker urged the audience of activists, some waiving campaign signs, not to become complacent just because Democrats marked successes in the 2018 midterm elections. That drew a round of cheers from the Charleston crowd, where the party wrested the 1st District congressional seat from Republican control last fall for the first time in decades.
HERROD BROWN: In the final swing of a political tour as he decides whether to enter the 2020 presidential race, Brown spent time this weekend in South Carolina. He stressed his commitment to higher wages and more robust health care and acknowledged the crucial role of the early-voting state.
BERNIE SANDERS: Sanders was in his birthplace of Brooklyn to call for Americans from all walks of life to join his effort for a political revolution, one he’s been waging for four decades.
Calling Trump the most dangerous president in modern U.S. history, the Vermont senator said that his campaign is built to defeat Trump.
ELIZABETH WARREN: At a campaign stop in Waterloo, Iowa, the Massachusetts senator said Democrats should focus on policies over personal attacks, and to remain united in order to win the 2020 presidential race.
