Sen. Cory Booker announces run for president

DES MOINES — U.S. Sen. Cory Booker is running for president and is coming back to Iowa.

Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, announced this morning he is running for president. He joins a growing field of Democrats seeking the party's nomination.

'We are better when we help each other,' Booker said in a campaign video.

'I believe that we can build a country where no one is forgotten, no one is left behind; where parents can put food on the table; where there are good-paying jobs with good benefits in every neighborhood; where our criminal justice system keeps us safe, instead of shuffling more children into cages and coffins; where we see the faces of our leaders on television and feel pride, not shame.'

Iowa visit

Booker will visit Iowa for a two-day swing next week, his campaign said.

On Feb. 8, he will visit Mason City, Waterloo, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, and Feb. 9 he will visit Marshalltown and Des Moines.

Friday, February 8, 2019 schedule:CERRO GORDO COUNTYBLACK HAWK COUNTYLINN COUNTYJOHNSON COUNTY

WHAT: Meet and Greet

WHERE: Mason City, IA

WHEN: 9:15 AM CT

WHAT: Community Round Table

WHERE: Waterloo, IA

WHEN: 1:30 PM CT

WHAT: Community Forum

WHERE: Cedar Rapids, IA

WHEN: 5:30 PM CT

WHAT: Meet and Greet

WHERE: Iowa City, IA

WHEN: 8:30 PM CT

He will follow that with trips to South Carolina and New Hampshire.

Booker, whose presidential campaign has been considered inevitable, visited Iowa in October to campaign for Iowa Democratic candidates and speak at the Iowa Democratic Party's fall fundraiser.

He also spoke to Iowa Democrats at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

Booker's campaign said it will be fueled by grass-roots support, that he will not accept donations from corporate political committees or federal lobbyists, and that he opposes independent political committees — known as super PACs — that support his or any other presidential campaign.

Growing field

Booker joins a Democratic field that already includes Pete Buttigieg, Julian Castro, John Delaney, Tulsi Gabbard, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Andrew Yang.