In a recent development, Senator Cory Booker (D.
, N.J.) has been accused of violating Senate ethics rules by an ethics watchdog group, the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT).
The group alleges that Booker used his record-breaking 25-hour speech, which set a new Senate speaking record, to raise funds for his campaign, thereby breaching long-standing Senate ethics rules.
According to The Washington Free Beacon, FACT filed a complaint with the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, highlighting a series of campaign messages that Booker sent out during and after his marathon speech. These messages included calls for supporters to "stand with Cory" by signing up for his email list, as well as solicitations for contributions to both his campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from those "inspired" by his historic performance.
The watchdog group contends that Booker's actions represent a clear violation of ethics rules that prohibit lawmakers from leveraging their official position for campaign purposes. "It is clear that Senator Booker's Senate floor speech had a campaign purpose," FACT stated in its complaint. The group warned that if such violations go unpunished, the Senate floor could increasingly be seen as a campaign venue.
The group further elaborated on the issue, stating, "During his speech, he sent a series of emails that campaigned and sought valuable supporter information and campaign contributions based on his Senate floor speech. Immediately after his speech, Booker sent an email that requested donations for his campaign and the DNC if the recipient liked what they saw him do on the Senate floor. There is no more direct of a tie between an official action and campaign solicitation."
Kendra Arnold, FACT's executive director, expressed her hope that the Senate Ethics Committee would take action on this case to discourage other senators from fundraising off official actions and to maintain citizens' confidence in Congress. Arnold stated that the Senate's ethics rules "do not allow what is clearly performance art on the Senate floor for future political gain, whether that be for list-building or fundraising."
Despite the controversy, Booker's 25-hour speech received widespread praise from the press and Democrats, not so much for its content but for the sheer length of time he spent on the Senate floor without a break. Political pollster Frank Luntz even suggested that Booker "may have changed the course of political history" with his speech, positioning him as the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028.
However, it's worth noting that Booker's speech did not obstruct any legislation, thus not qualifying as a filibuster in the traditional sense. Instead, he spent much of his time criticizing the Trump administration's cuts to the federal workforce and sharing accounts from his constituents who claim to have been negatively impacted by the administration's "reckless actions."
After his speech, Booker told NPR, "The body is weary in a lot of places, from my back to my feet and to my legs, I'm just feeling it. But my soul is soaring and I feel very blessed by the whole experience." His office, however, has not responded to requests for comment on the allegations raised by FACT.
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