Cory Booker: “I thank you for the recognition, and I thank the Democratic leader for his words. The Democratic leader talked about…”

“I thank you for the recognition, and I thank the Democratic leader for his words. The Democratic leader talked about what is happening in our country. I have never seen something like this before in all my years, where hundreds of thousands of Americans have been out in protest--and not just certain sectors. In all 50 States, in large cities and small towns, Americans from every background, race, religion, and political party have joined together following the gruesome capture of the torture and murder of a fellow American. This is a profound moment. It is a moral moment. We know this is not a partisan moment because the good will of all Americans is evident, from national polling that shows that real reform is widely supported by people of both parties to just the voices of people who are saying that we are a nation formed around a fundamental idea of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, to have it so fundamentally violated. The call is for us to act, to come together as good men and women and do something to protect human lives. We have done that before on the Federal level in a bipartisan way, coming together to protect people against indiscriminate violence--from the Violence Against Women Act to even the historic, bipartisan work that went on to get 99 Members of this body behind an anti-lynching bill. I am grateful for that aspect of our history, that this is a body that has acted multiple times to try and protect human life.…”