WASHINGTON — Cory Booker made a splashy entrance on his first official day in DC — getting a private sit-down with President Obama in the Oval Office and gaining national celebrity status as he joined the clubby US Senate.
Booker, 44, was followed around by a pack of reporters and photographers and was sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden.
The former Newark mayor is now the second African-American senator, along with South Carolina Republican Tim Scott
“He is a rock star — he deserves it,” said Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a first-term senator who stood virtually unnoticed in a hallway as Booker breezed by with the media entourage.
“I think a lot of him,” gushed Biden before the induction ceremony.
Dozens of relatives and friends packed the Senate gallery, including CBS-TV host Gayle King and civil-rights legend Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.).
Booker is the 55th member of the Democratic majority.