Newark Mayor Discusses His Sympathy for (and History with) “Non-Violent” Drug Dealers
By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog
Cory Booker made some decent points in his weekend interview with Michael Aron, Save Jerseyans. He also must’ve skipped this season’s Breaking Bad episodes (or at least completely missed the moral of the story).
Yes, the so-called “war on drugs” hasn’t been a resounding success. Yes, the criminal justice system is in dire need of reform (a position supported by prominent Republicans including Chris Christie and Sam Brownback), particularly where it concerns “non-violent” drug offenders (i.e. the kid caught with a bag of pot at a concert).
But how many New Jersey voters share the view of Cory Booker (D-Twitter) that drug dealers are “non-violent” offenders who deserve greater leniency?
I suspect next to none is the correct answer but there you have it. Click here to listen to the entire interview. Aron’s T-Bone questioning begins around the 9:15 mark which acts as a natural segway to Booker’s strange romanticization of the drug trade.
Wow squared, folks!
Is it any wonder that Newark’s murder rate is surging with a guy like this at the helm? I can’t wait to hear what Cory’s future senate colleagues from the American Southwest have to say about this; in those states, it’s no secret that drug trafficking-related violence is at state-of-emergency levels. The universe of Breaking Bad isn’t based in Narnia, outer space or some exotic locale located halfway around the globe. Its producers had a real world example to draw upon very close to home, and that drug trade certainly plays a role in the violence afflicting Booker’s own adopted city.
Does he care? I’m sure at some level, but certainly not enough to log-out of Twitter and do his job.
Now, as you might expect, Booker didn’t want to discuss T-Bone and his cronies as much as Aron did, calling the line of questioning a distraction from the real issues like Syria. Booker than promptly refused to give Aron a straight answer on Syria (for those keeping track, he staked three different positions in one week).
Is he naive to the extreme or just plan full of it, Save Jerseyans? Or is he simply a generous guy who is trying to give political bloggers plenty to write about in a gubernatorial cycle devoid of a real contest?
Whatever the case might be, I can’t imagine how anyone thinks he deserves their vote although, too be fair, my imagination clearly isn’t as good as Cory Booker’s…
