We are presenting diaries about upcoming Democrats who are running or are considering running to be the Democratic nominee for president in 2020. We are breaking these expositions into multiple parts, biography first, and then by positions on issues. We are starting now because of how important the 2020 race will be.
This diary will focus on the biography of Senator Cory Booker.
Cory Booker was born in 1969, in Washington, D. C., but grew up in an upscale suburb of Newark, New Jersey, called Harrington Park, apparently because his parents, who were both high level people at IBM, those upscale parents wanted their son to go to the better schools in the better suburb.
And that worked out well,
because Cory ended up going to Stanford, where he got a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree, then, on a Rhodes Scholar scholarship, he went to Oxford for another degree. Then, he went to Yale, where he got his law degree.
Smart man.
At that point in his life, Cory apparently felt a powerful desire to help those less fortunate than himself.
In 1998, he moved in, to a place called The Brick Towers, a place known for poverty and crime, in the heart of Newark, New Jersey.
www.imdb.com/…
He led the project's tenants in their fight for improvements in housing, maintenance and security. That same year he won election to the Newark City Council in an upset victory over a four-term incumbent. The next year, as a council member, he went on a ten-day hunger strike to protest rampant and blatant drug-dealing in one of Newark's worst housing projects. In 2000 he spent five months living in a motor home, staying on streets in some of the most crime- and drug-infested areas of the city to get an idea of just how bad conditions were.
Apparently, his method for trying to make the world a better place, is to work hard, starting in one part of one city, and work hard to make that one part of the world, just a little bit better.
Sounds like a plan to me.
In 2002, in order to advance his ideas, he ran for Mayor of Newark.
He lost.
But he tried again, in 2006.
This time he won:
taking more than 72% of the vote in the largest landslide victory in Newark's history. In addition, Newark voters swept out the entire City Council, replacing them with the slate of candidates endorsed by Booker, giving him solid control over the city government.
Wow.
He really got the Newark voters on his side.
Wow.
After some years as Mayor of Newark, Booker considered running for the United States Senate.
Just as he was making plans, the Senator from New Jersey that he was planning to replace, that Senator died. Booker won the special election, in 2013, to replace the deceased Senator for the remaining part of his term. Then, in 2014, he was re-elected to a full six year term.
Which brings us to the present, 2019, and discussing those who will run for public office next year,
in 2020.
Senator Cory Booker, seems to me, will be running for something in 2020,
either re-election as a Senator for New Jersey,
or President,
or, maybe, Vice President.
Seems to me.
I hope you liked my diary.
I kept it short.
Here are my sources:
en.wikipedia.org/…
www.imdb.com/…
www.thestate.com/…
act.corybooker.com/…
www.booker.senate.gov/…
Thanks for reading.