US Senator Cory Booker has shattered a decades-old record for the longest continuous speech in Senate history, speaking for a staggering 25 hours and five minutes. The New Jersey Democrat took to the Senate floor at 7 PM on Monday and did not yield until after 8 PM the following day.
His goal? To call attention to what he described as a “crisis” in American democracy under President Donald Trump.
In surpassing the previous record—held by the late segregationist Senator Strom Thurmond, who filibustered against the Civil Rights Act of 1957 for 24 hours and 18 minutes—Booker etched his name into Senate history. But unlike Thurmond, who fought against progress, Booker used his time to rally against what he sees as a dangerous consolidation of power.
“I rise with the intention of disrupting the normal business of the United States Senate for as long as I am physically able,” Booker said at the outset of his remarks. “I rise tonight because I believe sincerely that our country is in crisis,” Booker said.
Booker wasted no time setting the tone for his speech. “I rise with the intention of disrupting the normal business of the United States Senate for as long as I am physically able,” he declared. “I rise tonight because I believe sincerely that our country is in crisis.”
Over the course of his speech, he lambasted Trump’s sweeping budget cuts, which he claimed had put millions of Americans at risk. He reserved particular criticism for Trump’s closest advisor, billionaire Elon Musk, who has been spearheading efforts to gut entire government agencies. (EconomicTimes)