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MONROE: Sen. Booker speaks at senior center

By Nicole M. Wells, Special Writer
MONROE — Around 250 people, most of them seniors, came out to the Monroe Township Senior Center on Halsey Reed Road Monday afternoon to meet their fresh-faced, 10-months-minted U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ.
Mr. Booker, 45, who won the special election in October 2013 to finish out the late Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg’s term, is currently campaigning for a full six-year term of his own.
While Congress is on summer recess, he has been visiting communities across the state to discuss the issues with and answer questions from constituents, ahead of the November elections.
Monday afternoon’s meet and greet focused primarily on senior issues, as Mr. Booker talked about the importance of programs such as Medicare and Social Security.
"I think the issues we have right now with Americans and our seniors are particularly important to be fighting for," he said. "What frustrates me in Washington, and what I know is going to be a big fight, is that a lot of people want to balance the budget on the backs of seniors."
Mr. Booker said that he is not against being fiscally conservative, but that we, as a nation, need to spend within our means, in accordance with our priorities.
"It is unacceptable to me, that when we have bad decisions being made in Washington, that the people that should pay for those bad decisions should not be our seniors," he said.
Protecting Social Security and Medicare from any kind of benefits cut is one of his top priorities as New Jersey’s senator, Mr. Booker said.
"If you are an American that works through your life, contributes to this country, then you should be able to retire with dignity and security," he said.
Other topics Mr. Booker touched on were the skyrocketing costs of a college education, the need to invest in infrastructure projects and alternatives to incarceration for non-violent offenders.
"What I want to be, is a senator that champions common sense American values," he said.
After delivering his opening remarks, Mr. Booker then opened the discussion up to those in attendance and fielded questions from audience members.
Questions ranged from whether Mr. Booker would consider a vice-presidential run, to how to bring an increasingly polarized America together, to when the Affordable Care Act would kick in and help defray the cost of prescription medications.
At the conclusion of the question and answer session, the young senator was thronged by people who wanted to shake his hand, offer a word of encouragement or support or take a self-portrait or "selfie" with him, using their smart-phone or tablet.
With a practiced hand and a ready smile, Mr. Booker graciously obliged, before departing for his next campaign stop on the trail of public opinion.