Cory Booker: “I have prepared remarks, but before I do that, I want to thank the pages who are in this class right now. They are hard…”

“I have prepared remarks, but before I do that, I want to thank the pages who are in this class right now. They are hard at work, and they do so much for this institution. I just want it written in the Record of the U.S. Senate that on this day in March, the junior Senator from New Jersey recognized them for everything they do around here, even though they do not tell jokes that are very good. Now, if I may start my prepared remarks, I rise today with other colleagues who are speaking, particularly my colleague from Connecticut, Senator Murphy, to speak on a bill that actually passed out of the House, which was something that was extraordinary. It passed out of the House of Representatives just over a full year ago, and we are waiting here in the Senate for it to come to the floor. I am one of these folks who really believe that we have too much unnecessary partisanship around issues when there is so much common cause in our country and when there is so much common ground in our country. Yes, indeed, debate is important. Disagreement is important. It undergirds the ideals of democracy that we should form a national conversation and work through our differences--the idea that that actually produces a better whole and a better result.…”