Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Tuesday accused Sen. Cory Booker of crying “crocodile tears” over Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in order to raise money.
“Cory Booker is using his crocodile tears as a ploy to raise money. It’s pathetic,” McDaniel wrote on Twitter.
Cory Booker is using his crocodile tears as a ploy to raise money. It’s pathetic.https://t.co/gIeUBAzHj6
— Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) September 4, 2018
A spokesman for Booker’s campaign disputed McDaniel’s claim, saying the email was not soliciting funds, but rather collecting signatures. Upon signing up, the user is taken to the New Jersey Democrats’ website which prominently displays tickets for sale for an upcoming conference.
In the email, Booker, D-N.J., argued that all Americans should be concerned “about what it would mean for our country if Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed to the Supreme Court,” citing the federal appeals court judge’s record on abortion and healthcare. He said Kavanaugh “was the one judge on President Trump’s shortlist who poses a direct threat to the integrity of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.”
Kavanaugh, following his time as a lawyer helping to investigate former President Bill Clinton and as a member of the George W. Bush administration, has argued for greater executive powers in the face of presidential probes.
McDaniel’s sharp reaction came after Booker worked with other Senate Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee to try to delay the start of Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing Tuesday before the panel. They were protesting the late release of 42,000 pages of documents from Kavanaugh’s tenure in the Bush White House.
Booker isn’t up for re-election until 2020.
