(NewsNation) — Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., criticized President Donald Trump’s first executive actions Tuesday, saying they would make health care more expensive while failing to address immigration reform effectively.
Trump put pen to paper Monday, signing a slew of executive orders relating to ending diversity, equity and inclusion programs within the federal government, enforcing heightened border security and many other issues.
“We have laborers in our state, some of our first responders are dreamers. And so this has to be done in a smart way that doesn’t hurt our economy,” Booker said Tuesday on NewsNation’s “CUOMO.”
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Booker disputed claims that immigration enforcement would be strategically targeted, citing examples from Trump’s previous term in which authorities detained nonviolent individuals, including a grandfather facing deportation over an old parking ticket.
“When he was in office last time, we had our archbishop getting involved, trying to give shelter to a grandfather who was for a parking ticket years and years earlier,” Booker said.
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The senator took aim at Trump’s health care-related executive orders, particularly those affecting Medicare and Medicaid innovation programs.
“He has made health care more expensive,” Booker said, explaining that Trump rolled back initiatives designed to lower prescription drug costs for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and improve negotiations with pharmaceutical companies.
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Trump rescinded former President Joe Biden’s Executive Order 14087, “Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Americans.” He included this directive among those he deemed to be “unpopular, inflationary, illegal, and radical practices.”
While critical of Trump’s actions, Booker maintained that Senate Democrats remain open to bipartisan solutions, particularly on immigration.
He referenced a recent bipartisan deal that Trump rejected, saying, “Trump made it clear, ‘I don’t want that deal, because it’s not my deal.'”
The senator emphasized that major reforms would require cooperation from both parties.
NewsNation partner The Hill contributed to this report.
