NJ Spotlight News | Sen. Cory Booker discusses Israel-Hamas war | Season 2023

There's a lot on the agenda this week.

One of the things I'm very concerned with is just the safety and security of New Jersey residents.

And so I've led a call with bipartisan senators.

There's four of us who are leading a charge to get more resources for the fund that synagogues and sheikhs and mosques and others who are seeing heightened activity and potential threats.

We want to make sure that everyone in New Jersey is safe, calling on one of us to remember we are one people in this nation with a common destiny.

We need to look out for each other and condemn hate in any of its forms.

In addition to that, we're going to go to Washington this week and try in the Senate to get a supplemental funding, not just for Ukraine.

Now, but also for Israel and Israel's defense.

And then I'm going to continue to do a lot of work.

We have a real challenge right now to make sure that we get the hostages released.

It is of the utmost importance and then also to work on humanitarian corridors in Gaza.

There's clearly a waffle happening there with civilians.

There are many Americans that are in Gaza right now.

We want to do everything that we can to get them out safely and to try to get humanitarian support in.

They've been threats against this temple.

I am not aware of any threats against this temple specifically.

But there are these are the times you want to make sure you're proactive and not reactive.

Are you going to Saudi Arabia?

Yes.

My intention right now, I'm working with Lindsey Graham and Susan Collins, Senator Cardin, to do a delegation to Saudi Arabia and potentially to Israel, as long as we're not pulling valuable resources away from the urgent demands of the State Department.

When would that be?

That would be next week.

Next weekend?

Yes.

This week is a long work week in Washington with a lot of important things to do.

So, Zegart, you mentioned it's good to see you.

Yes.

You mentioned opening up humanitarian corridors in Gaza.

Your colleagues in the House, including Senator Byrd, including Congressman Barney Watson, Coleman penned a letter to Biden expressing concern about violations of the strip.

What are your concerns with regard to that?

And do you support a ground invasion?

So first and foremost, we all who care about children and humanity should be anguished about what's happening.

Democracies abide by the rule of law and the rules of war.

Terrorists target civilians violate not just the rules of war, but the rules of humanity.

And now you see this terrorist organization, Hamas, using its own, using human lives, using Palestinians as human shields.

This is despicable.

And it's going to cause a lot of pain and unfortunately, we're seeing the images coming out of Gaza now.

And so I'm going to do everything I can to support, number one, as the president did, to call for a proportional response that does everything we can, it can to preserve civilian life.

In addition to that, though, there has to be some kind of humanitarian response.

And I do believe creating humanitarian corridors where people can get out, where Americans we have Palestinian Americans in Gaza right now can get released as well.

So I I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that we support Israel, that we defeat Hamas, which is a terrorist organization that has now killed Americans, that we defeat Hamas.

We do it to make sure that we do everything possible to protect civilian life and to find ways to get humanitarian aid there.

Can you talk more about what's being done to affect civilian life right now?

Is there enough?

I mean, there needs to be more done.

And that's why I've been in conversations working with State Department officials, talking to other high level personnel from the U.N. to our country.

We've got to do more to try to protect civilian life, as well as support Israel's right to self-defense.

What about the role of Congress?

And obviously, we're in the Senate and obviously the House is about to do right now.

What actions can Congress take right now and what actions does Congress need to take and are they able to do it?

You know, there's clearly a crisis in the House of Representatives.

Republicans are unable to put a speaker there.

There's not nothing like this in history.

And in many ways, it's a small group of Republicans, a majority of Republicans and Democrats in the House and the Senate support defending and supporting Ukraine, supporting the state of Israel, getting the hostages released, finding ways to minimize any civilian deaths.

This is something that we're united on.

But this small group of Republicans seem to be making it impossible.

I'm not a member of the House of Representatives, a member of the Senate.

But my hope is, is that the Republicans and Democrats in the middle will turn to each other and find a way that Republicans would make honorable concessions to Democrats and find a way through that compromise to get the House functioning again so we can do the important work that needs to be done.

And with regard to Palestinians in Jersey and people with families still in Gaza, what's your message to them?

I've talked to some Palestinian leaders today in New Jersey.

Again, everyone in our country should feel heartbreak and anguish about watching the deaths of innocents within the Palestinian children.

Right now that we see the images of as well as the hostages that have been taken by Hamas's actions, as well as those who have been murdered by Hamas.

Hamas has shown their evil and shown not only their willingness to kill Israelis, but their willingness to put Palestinians in incredible danger.

So all of us should be hoping and working for the minimum, doing everything we can to minimize any human loss of life.

And it starts with the hostages.

It should and should be it must be released.

And with regard to the latest charges against your colleagues, Senator Menendez, you called on him to resign.

Should the Senate proceed with expulsion?

Look, there are proceedings going on now that are criminal and ethical.

There is a due process.

And I want to make sure that we follow that due process and that due process starts with the presumption of innocence.

I've called on Senator Menendez to take the make the decision himself to resign.

And we'll see how this plays out.

But again, everyone deserves due process.

Does that process include, again, the Senate procedures for expulsion, particularly with regard to the latest allegations that he was working as a foreign agent for the Egyptian government?

Again, the Senate has its ethical ethics processes.

Senator Menendez is due due process and I'm sure that those those will be followed.

Thank you so much.

All right.

Thank you very.

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