Brakkton Booker
Brakkton Booker is a National Desk reporter based in Washington, DC.
He covers a wide range of topics including issues related to federal social safety net programs and news around the mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
His reporting takes him across the country covering natural disasters, like hurricanes and flooding, as well as tracking trends in regional politics and in state governments, particularly on issues of race.
Following the 2018 mass shooting in Parkland, Florida, Booker's reporting broadened to include a focus on young activists pushing for changes to federal and state gun laws, including the March For Our Lives rally and national school walkouts.
Prior to joining NPR's national desk, Booker spent five years as a producer/reporter for NPR's political unit. He spent most to the 2016 presidential campaign cycle covering the contest for the GOP nomination and was the lead producer from the Trump campaign headquarters on election night. Booker served in a similar capacity from the Louisville campaign headquarters of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2014. During the 2012 presidential campaign, he produced pieces and filed dispatches from the Republican and Democratic National conventions, as well as from President Obama's reelection site in Chicago.
In the summer of 2014, Booker took a break from politics to report on the unrest in Ferguson, Missouri.
Booker started his career as a show producer working on nearly all of NPR's magazine programs, including Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and former news and talk show Tell Me More, where he produced the program's signature Barbershop segment.
He earned a bachelor's degree from Howard University and was a 2015 Kiplinger Fellow. When he's not on the road, Booker enjoys discovering new brands of whiskey and working on his golf game.
-
John Geddert, 63, who coached the women's gold medal team in the 2012 Summer Olympics, was charged Thursday with two dozen criminal counts. An official says he took his life later the same day.
-
The Republican from Nebraska speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep about the impeachment of former President Donald Trump, the future of the GOP and working with the Biden administration. -
The cremated remains arrived with ceremony in a motorcade with members of Sicknick's family and were carried by colleagues into the Capitol. His urn rests on a pedestal next to a U.S. flag. -
The incident renews scrutiny of the city and its police department following the death of Daniel Prude, a Black man who died of asphyxiation after an encounter with police in March. -
Keller, 38, is facing three counts: obstructing law enforcement, knowingly entering a restricted building without lawful authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. -
The number represents an uptick in National Guard troops that will be deployed to the area, but it could still fluctuate. -
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state has 60 refrigerated units available if needed. He also said that 5,000 body bags were distributed to some of the hardest-hit counties. -
"Conducting the championship in one geographic region allows for more planning and execution of safeguards," an NCAA official said on Monday. The NCAA hopes all 64 teams will play in San Antonio. -
Paul Gigot, editorial page editor of The Wall Street Journal, writes, "There's nothing like playing the race or gender card to stifle criticism." -
Wisconsin does not have automatic recounts, but a losing candidate can file a sworn petition requesting one if the margin of victory is less than 1%. Democrat Joe Biden leads by roughly 21,000 votes.
