Sen. Bill Nelson Smacks Down N.J. Senator in Push-Up Contest

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson is already known for his tenacity and willingness to take on out-of-this-world assignments without batting an eye. Now, the 74-year-old Florida Democrat can also add push-up champ to his list of accomplishments.

That’s according to U.S. Sen. Cory Booker. It seems the New Jersey Democrat had a recent meeting with Nelson to brainstorm ideas for the next Congress. Before that meeting got started, the pair began talking about fitness and one thing led to another. Nelson and Booker, 47, found themselves on the floor, engaged in an impromptu contest of strength and will.

That contest didn’t go quite so well for Booker.

“He is tremendously strong and vital,” Booker pointed out on Facebook before admitting to the thrashing.

“He asked me how many push-ups I could do and before I knew it, we were on the ground pumping them out,” Booker wrote. “I would now probably write about how he whooped me, left me huffing and puffing as he eased right into the meeting not breathing hard at all. But to write something like that would be embarrassing and quite humbling so I won’t (but he did).”

Nelson has been one of Florida’s two senators since 2001. He also served in the Florida House of Representatives in the 1970s before being elected to the U.S. House in 1979. The Miami native made history in January 1986 when he became the second sitting member of Congress to also serve as an astronaut. He flew aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia as a payload specialist.

Nelson ran for governor in 1990, but was beaten out in the primary by the contest’s eventual winner, U.S. Sen. Lawton Chiles. Ironically, Nelson made Chiles’ then age of 60 and his health an issue in the campaign.

Nelson is up for re-election in 2018. The field of potential challengers hasn’t fully developed yet, but a possible run by Republican Gov. Rick Scott has been a topic of much speculation.

As for Booker, he’s the former mayor of Newark. He’s served in the Senate since 2013 when he won a special election to fill the seat held by Frank Lautenberg, who died in office. Booker won his first full term with a 2014 victory against Jeff Bell.

Whether Booker would accept a rematch against Nelson is unclear. Just how many push-ups the pair managed to pump out wasn’t divulged.

Photo via Sen. Cory Booker’s Facebook page