2020 Democratic contender Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.) criticized former Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday for his statement during a fundraiser this week that there was "some civility" when working with Senate segregationists in the 1970s.
The big picture: Biden also recalled how former Mississippi Sen. James O. Eastland used to call him "son" rather than "boy" — apparently a reference to Biden's youth after his election to the chamber at the age of 29 in 1972 — leading Booker to blast the use of "boy" as language meant to "perpetuate white supremacy and strip black Americans of our very humanity."
- Booker issued his statement on Juneteenth, the annual commemoration of slavery ending in the U.S., after testifying at the first House hearing in 12 years on the issue of slavery reparations.
- Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the House majority whip and a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, defended the former vice president, saying that "Biden didn’t say anything different than what describes his work with Strom Thurmond," per Politico's Jake Sherman.
A thought bubble, from CNN's Rebecca Buck: "It is really unusual for Booker to respond to something another candidate does or says. ... So this is a big deal."
Booker's full statement:
Go deeper: Where the 2020 Democratic candidates stand on reparations
