No foolin' here!

Was April 1, 2025 the best April Fools' Day ever? For me, yes.

I’ve long hated April Fools’ Day. I actually dread it; I find it cruel and unnecessary. And as we’ve all seen, there’s no need for an intentionally cruel “holiday” when the last 72 days of the newest Administration have all been intentionally cruel. So color me surprised to realize that yesterday was easily the most successful and joyous April 1st ever. Not just nationally, but here in the Palmetto State as well. Please forgive the length of this one, there’s just so much to cover!

Starting with Cory:

Note: yes, I’m going to refer to Senator Booker as “Cory” because if you’ve ever met him, as I’ve been fortunate to do on multiple occasions, he is the most friendly, charismatic, casual dude. His staff hands out buttons that say “I got my Cory Selfie” once you get your iconic picture with the man. As someone who I got to vote for as my US Senator and have been in conversation with at least 4 times (that I can recall), I’m going to take the personal privilege to refer to him as if he’s my friend.

When I woke up on April 1, I knew Senator Cory Booker had taken the Senate floor the night before and was prepared to go as long as he could. This wasn’t technically a filibuster, as there was no bill he was stalling a vote for, but for all intents and purposes, it functioned the same. Booker could hold the floor until he chose to yield - which interfered with a scheduled 10am vote for a confirmation vote. Cory’s purpose was to highlight the ways Trump and Musk are hurting the American people.

I tuned in to the AP’s live stream around 9am, by which point Cory had been speaking for 14 hours. His Democratic colleagues took turns rising to ask him questions, often in the form of personal or constituent stories, allowing Cory a small pause in continuous speaking and to help with subject changes in the speech. As time ticked on, it was clear to me that Cory had his eye on Strom Thurmond.

For those who don’t know, Cory Booker is a huge history buff. I had no doubt in my mind then, and has since been confirmed, that Cory was astutely aware that South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond held the record for retaining the floor the longest, when he filibustered for 24 hours and 18 minutes against the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. And while Strom was granted a bathroom break, Cory did not take one - a question that many asked as they realized what was happening and tuned in to watch history.

Let’s sit on this for a minute: the longest senate speech was held by perhaps the most racist dude in US history, fighting against giving Blacks the right to vote, only to have a Black senator unseat his record nearly 70 years later. Not only that, Booker did it with the intent of calling out the most authoritarian, and arguably the most racist President in US history. That is some weird poetic legislative justice.

But it led to the most powerful act of performative politics I’ve ever witnessed. Many began Cory’s time questioning if what he was doing was actually accomplishing anything. By the 24-hour mark, it was clear he was. The 7:00-7:20pm stint on April 1 was some of the most beautifully orchestrated political work. It started with Senator Chris Murphy, who’s side Booker sat by during his 14 hour and 50 minute filibuster in 2016 for gun safety measures, asking him (paraphrased) “what did [Cory] hope to accomplish when he set out on this journey?” Which allowed Cory to launch into a 20-minute tale about his memories with John Lewis. The man literally broke Strom Thurmond’s record by praising a civil rights hero and reminding the world that he [Booker] isn’t here despite people like Strom Thurmond, he’s here because of them.

Cory Booker yielded the floor at 8:05pm on April 1; 25 hours & 5 minutes after he began. He acknowledged the presiding officers, and most importantly his staff for allowing him to be successful. It was clear that his staff understood the historical assignment, rose to the occasion, and allowed Cory to shine. This wasn’t some reading of the phone book to fill 25 hours; this was 25 hours of substance, personal and constituent stories, and reminding the American public the harms being caused by this administration. And when he was done? Cory took media interviews. The man is nonstop.

But there was a win in the US House yesterday, too:

While Cory Booker was making history, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was handed (yet another) embarrassing defeat on the House floor. A bipartisan bill sponsored by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Florida) and Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colorado) to allow members of the House to vote via proxy upon the birth of a child is one that Mike Johnson has been vocally against for some time now. But Luna and Pettersen used all of the tools at their disposal and brought it to the floor anyway. With the small majority the Republicans have in the House, and Luna already ready to stand with the Democrats, they only needed 2 other Republicans to vote with them - instead, 9 total Republicans rejected the Speaker’s wishes. Johnson was so upset that he cancelled House proceedings for the rest of the week. Maybe that’ll allow for more town halls to occur! (That was sarcasm, in case that didn’t come across in print.)

The good guys beat Elon in Wisconsin!

In perhaps the most anxiety inducing race that didn’t directly impact my life in quite some time, Wisconsin voters rejected Elon Musk’s candidate for state supreme court. AND they re-elected the Democratic Party-backed candidate to run public education in their state. (A harsh reminder that Wisconsin has no problem electing white women statewide, but not a woman of color…)

AND in two special elections in Florida for Congressional seats, both Democratic candidates significantly closed the gap from November. A further rebuke of the Trump-claimed “mandate” of his approval and support. While neither seat was expected to flip, Florida Dems deserve a shoutout for the effort they put in.

But wait, there’s more…South Carolina had numerous wins yesterday as well!

April 1 was a packed day in Columbia, South Carolina. Advocates were prepared to split their efforts between the Statehouse and the State Board of Education meeting. Both were scheduled to take important votes that would impact public education in the state.

The SC House was meant to resume debate on H3927, a statewide DEI ban. Debate had started on Wednesday of the previous week, but it became clear that Republicans realized the current wording of the bill wasn’t going to pass muster, so they adjourned debate until the 1st to work on some potential amendments. In a chamber with a supermajority, this was a surprising development. But even more surprising is that April 1st came and went without further debate as well. While we do expect an amended version of the bill to pass the House today, it’s fate in the Senate remains unclear. I am fond of saying that any day a bad bill doesn’t get a vote, is a good day in South Carolina - so without a vote yesterday, we take that win.

In the SC Senate, Bill S425 to ensure free school meals for students in poverty passed unanimously. Sponsored by my state senator, Tom Davis (R), it codifies into law the budget provisos that have expanded free school meal participation in South Carolina. Prior to those provisos, only 40% of SC public school students who qualified for free meals were receiving them. As of 2024, over 80% of all public school students in South Carolina received free breakfast and lunch daily. S425 now heads to the House, where the chair of the House Education and Public Works committee, Rep. Shannon Erickson (R-Beaufort), has voiced support for the bill sponsored by a member of her delegation.

And in perhaps the most shocking news of the day, the South Carolina State Board of Education voted to postpone a vote to ban 10 books from schools statewide. Regulation 43-170 that went into effect over the summer (without proper legislative review, due to a loophole in language) allows any public school parent in the state to challenge up to 5 titles per month. This has led to 21 books being banned for students statewide since November. 14 of those titles have come from one parent in Beaufort County who challenged 97 titles in the fall of 2022 and put Beaufort County on the map nationally for its fight against book bans. If the board had agreed to ban her next 10, South Carolina would become the state with the most book titles banned in the nation. At March’s meeting, state board members began to voice their dissent - with 2 votes against removal. At yesterday’s meeting, it became clear that more members realized how much of a waste of time this process was and discussed the need to review the regulation that allows these challenges to begin with. Some members from the most conservative corners of the state expressed that they have not heard directly from constituents that they have concerns over access to these books and that the state has given too much power to one parent to control what students in their part of the state can read. There was a motion to postpone the vote on the status of those 10 titles, which was unanimously approved. Those in the room and streaming were stunned. This is a testament to the consistent presence and pressure put on by members of the Freedom to Read movement; it is clear their testimonies are changing hearts and opening minds. While we aren’t out of the woods yet, this unexpected victory is not one to take lightly.

In a world where the daily news feels awful, people feel helpless, and we’re begging for elected officials to do something substantive, all of these little victories matter. They reinvigorate and give people hope. It lights a spark that can grow into something substantial. Democracy dies in darkness, and yesterday was a bright light.

PS: Cory Booker stood for 25+ hours straight yesterday; what are you doing today to meet the moment?