New Jersey Senator, Cory Booker, is one of nearly 20 Democrats vying for the party’s presidential nomination and made a campaign stop in Carroll Tuesday afternoon during his “Justice for All” tour. While in town, Booker laid out his position on some of the most controversial topics facing the nation, the first being healthcare. Booker’s end goal is affordable, quality healthcare for every person in the country. He said he supports Medicare for All, but having a plan to get there is a different story.
Booker proposed the federal government use its buying power to negotiate down prescription drug costs, remove patents on overpriced medications to allow generics into the market and reduce the age for Medicare eligibility to 55. According to Booker, this last method will lower the average age of individuals on private insurance and leave a healthier, less costly pool of people to insure for the market. Booker also addressed concerns over illegal immigration. He said he is a firm believer in border security, but the current policy of separating families and building a wall is not the answer.
Booker suggested taxpayer money would be better used by improving conditions in the countries where these people are coming from than on a multi-trillion dollar wall. Booker visited Carroll on the fourth day of his two-week campaign tour, with stops in the early caucus and primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and more.
