What a Senate floor clash between two Democrats says about where the party is headed

The spat between Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Cory Booker this week illustrates the larger question before Democrats: Resist Trump or bring home the goods?

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., clashed with Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., this week when he, in a fiery floor speech, tried to block a package of police funding bills as he called for greater resistance to President Donald Trump’s policies.

Afterward, Booker alluded to his efforts in the face of criticism from Cortez Masto saying, “What’s bothering me right now is we don’t see enough fight in this caucus.”

In an interview, Cortez Masto had her own message.

“I don’t need a lecture from anybody about how to take on and push back and fight against Donald Trump,” Cortez Masto said.

She took a shot at “long speeches” as a form of resistance, calling them ineffective as Democrats seek to win back Congress and eventually the White House. In April, Booker broke a Senate record by speaking for 25 hours, warning of the “grave and urgent” threat Trump’s administration posed to the country.