Lautenberg Slams Booker's Performance as Mayor

The one-sided war of words between Democrats Sen. Frank Lautenberg and Mayor Cory Booker continued Thursday, when Lautenberg slammed Booker’s tenure in city hall and described Newark as “a city in desperate need of attention,” the National Journal reported.

“He’s got a lot of work to do -- a lot of work that should have been done and hasn’t been done,” said Lautenberg, who has represented New Jersey in the Senate for nearly three decades.

In December, Booker announced he was considering a run for Senate in 2014, when the 89-year-old Lautenberg’s current term expires. Lautenberg has not said whether he is seeking another term, but in the weeks since Booker’s announcement, the Lautenberg camp has repeatedly taken shots at Booker, whose second term as mayor ends in 2014. Earlier this week Lautenberg likened the 43-year-old Booker to a disrespectful child who “deserved a spanking”.

Booker, however, has refrained from responding in kind, urging support for the veteran lawmaker during a television interview earlier this month.

Booker may feel he can afford to be magnanimous: polling released earlier this week shows him with a more than 20-point lead over Lautenberg.