Sen. Cory Booker revealed that he was one of the finalists in Hillary Clinton’s search for a running mate during the 2016 presidential election.
The New Jersey Democrat, who is now a surrogate for Joe Biden’s White House bid after ending his own campaign, dropped the detail about the previous presidential election on The View Tuesday.
“You know, look, I love my job. I actually was vetted by Hillary Clinton for that spot as well and got down to her final, her final list,” he explained. “Let me tell you, the being vetted in and of itself, forgive me for using such a colorful description, but it was a metaphorical deep exam, deep body cavity exam like I’ve never had before.”
Booker, who dropped out of the 2020 race in January, shared the tidbit after being asked if he wanted to join Biden on the Democratic ticket. The question came nearly a year after the lawmaker said he would not accept a vice presidential nomination from a male candidate.
Former MSNBC host Chris Matthews specifically asked him in June if he’d accept an offer to be the former vice president’s running mate, to which he responded, “I would accept Joe Biden being my vice president.”
“So look, I leave a lot to God, and I think more importantly for my life — and I’ve trusted in the Lord to guide my steps — I would have never thought I would have been a United States senator when I started out as a city councilperson in the central ward of Newark, New Jersey,” Booker continued on The View. “Who knows what my future holds.”
Clinton chose Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine as her running mate, but Booker did endorse her in the primary. At a campaign stop in Newark, she called Booker “a very special senator” and “very special person” who “probably has more energy and charisma than anybody else I know,” according to NBC News.
