Sen. Cory Booker’s ‘good trouble’: A model for People Power in America
In this image provided by Senate Television, Sen, Cory Booker, D-N.J. speaks on the Senate floor, Tuesday morning, April 1, 2025. (Senate Television via AP)
If you need inspiration and motivation to protest these dire times – when tariffs could destroy your economic well-being, when legal immigrants are deported and disappeared, when thousands of federal workers are losing jobs on a whim and when Africa has lost aid to prevent famine and disease – then remember this week’s “Cory Show.”
Though it really should be called the “Peoples’ Show” because it sets the model for American people power.
The speech’s simple strength will give you strength.
Sen. Cory Booker is the Democrat from New Jersey, but starting last Monday at 4 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time, Booker was speaking for all of us.
What of impending tariffs and all the disruptive chaos caused by the Trump Administration?
From the floor of the Senate, Booker led the way.
He spoke out, like we all should. And then he just kept going.
As Booker put it, it was “a moral moment.” He was a public official giving the longest speech in Senate history (more than 24 hours and 19 minutes) to denounce the un-Constitutional agenda of the Trump administration.
In the 19th hour Booker said: “I’m not going to sit by and do nothing. That’s why I’m standing here.”
He talked about everything Trump has done to date since January, especially the threats to everything from veterans to USAID to Social Security and affordable housing.
Booker was lucid enough in the 17th hour to restate his aim.
“This is not (a matter of) right or left. It is right or wrong,” Booker said deep into his demonstration. “This is not a partisan moment. It is a moral moment. Where do you stand? We started this by talking about John Lewis. It is time for good trouble. Necessary trouble.”
Indeed, the spirit of the late Georgia member of Congress and civil rights leader was the spark that began the marathon.
“In just 71 days, the President of the United States has inflicted so much harm on Americans’ safety, financial stability, the core foundations of our democracy and even our aspirations as a people,” said Booker from the very beginning when he invoked Lewis from the start.
“This is the time to get in some good trouble, to get into necessary trouble,” Booker said. “All of us have to think of those 10 words, 10 two-letter words, ‘if it is to be, it is up to me,’ because I believe generations from now will look back at this moment and have a single question: ‘Where were you?’
“We have a president who has come in, and the first thing he’s done in 71 days is insinuate fear and insecurity about Social Security by threatening it, by creating, telling lies about it, and by having somebody like Elon Musk calling it a Ponzi scheme,” Booker continued.
“You don’t insinuate fear amongst vulnerable communities. You don’t insinuate fear amongst our elders who deserve our respect and deserve to retire with dignity.”
As long as he kept standing, and stayed in the chamber (no bathroom breaks allowed) Booker held the floor. But he could be aided by Senators allowed to ask “questions” or talk themselves.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) brought up how we are cutting to the bone. If Liberty Mutual insurance has an overhead of 22 percent, he said, Social Security is at .5 percent and serves 73 million Americans.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) brought up the impact of the recent earthquake in Myanmar, and who shows up to help?
“The PRC (People’s Republic of China), said Booker. And not the US through USAID, cut by Musk who called it a criminal organization.
Booker read from his constituents’ letters, former USAID workers fired by Musk. The laid-off workers worried not merely for themselves but for the Africans who would starve or be subject to disease because of the cuts by the DOGE chainsaw.
Booker was angered: “(USAID is) less than 1 percent of our budget, and the people like the folks (whose letters) I read, whose whole life, all they wanted to do was to be the light of the American torch of freedom and hope to the world, and they had the rug pulled out from under them.”
One letter writer said the uncertainty of her life “has probably been one of the most painful parts of all this.”
Booker responded, “Thank you for your voice. Thank you for laying your pain plain, and your anger, making it real in my heart, as I know it’s in yours. I stand for you today.”
Booker had no problem staying on his feet. But he wasn’t “filibustering” as there was no legislation at stake. His goal was to best Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-SC) who went on for 24 hours and 11 minutes in 1957 to try to stop the Civil Rights Act.
Well into his 19th hour, Booker held up a copy of the Constitution for strength.
“My voice is inadequate to stop what they’re trying to do,” Booker said, referring to Trump’s demolition of the government.
“American people, we need you.”
The people were on social media listening to every word and responding with heart and fire emojis.
“Thank you Senator,” one viewer said. “Patriot!” said another.
“Keep going, we need this!” another said.
By 4:19 (PDT) on Tuesday, Booker was over the finish line, and was still talking past 5 p.m. (PDT).
Critics will call it a rambling stunt. But the country needed to see something extraordinary – at least one elected willing to take a public stand that’s both real and symbolic. See the recording for yourself. Skip around to find your story in the narrative.
And then commit to making your own good trouble.
Fighting the threat to our democracy will take all of us. And every ounce of stamina we have.
“The power of the people is greater than the people in power,” Booker said.
And then he re-invoked Lewis. “He said for us to go out and cause some good trouble, necessary trouble to redeem the soul of our nation. I want you to redeem the dream,” Booker said.
Then he paused and delivered his final line.
“Let’s get in good trouble. My friend Madame President, I yield the floor.” The Senate floor exploded with more than 30 seconds of applause. It was an appropriate reaction to the best response to date to the longest first two months of a presidency in US history.
Booker’s speech, the longest in the history of the Senate, had come to a rousing close. But Sen. Booker did not simply set a record.
He set the example to ignite a foundation for People Power in America.
Emil Guillermo is an award-winning journalist, news analyst and stage monologuist. He writes for the Inquirer.net’s US Channel. He has written a weekly “Amok” column on Asian American issues since 1995. Find him on YouTube, patreon and substack.
