Cory Booker speaks overnight in Senate against Trump : NPR

Sen. Cory Booker has spent all of Monday night and Tuesday morning on the Senate floor, delivering an impassioned speech in protest of the Trump administration’s policies. The effort, which also involves numerous Democrats, is inching closer to a record by the hour.

The New Jersey Democrat took the podium at 7 p.m. EDT, vowing to speak “for as long as I am physically able.” He was still standing — with glasses on and papers in hand — as of 1 p.m. on Tuesday, taking periodic breaks by yielding to questions from his colleagues.

By midday, over 48,000 people were watching Booker’s live stream on YouTube.

“I’ve been hearing from people all over my state and indeed all over the nation calling upon folks in Congress to do more, to do things that recognize the urgency, the crisis of the moment,” Booker said in a video posted to social media beforehand. “And so we all have a responsibility, I believe, to do something different, to cause — as [late Rep.] John Lewis said — ‘good trouble,’ and that includes me.”

Booker’s speech took aim at President Trump, White House senior adviser Elon Musk and policies he says show a “complete disregard for the rule of law, the Constitution, and the needs of the American people.”

It covered a wide range of topics overnight, from healthcare and Social Security to immigration, the economy, public education, free speech and foreign policy. And it included portions of letters that Booker said he had received from affected constituents, as well as public comments from world leaders, in recent weeks.

“In just 71 days, the president has inflicted harm after harm on Americans’ safety, financial stability, the foundations of our democracy, and any sense of common decency,” Booker said in his introductory remarks. “These are not normal times in our nation. And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate.”

Trump and Musk have not commented publicly on Booker’s speech. It comes at a tense time for Booker’s party: Nine Democrats joined with Republicans to pass a Trump-backed spending bill last month, preventing a government shutdown but alienating constituents who want lawmakers to push back against the president’s agenda.

Booker has not yet pulled out the phone book or children’s literature to read from, as some of his predecessors have done on the Senate floor. He has stayed focused on the topic of Trump’s agenda — and how he says it is hurting everyday Americans — weaving together domestic and foreign policy concerns.

In the 15th hour, he said he still had “fuel in the tank.” About 16 hours and 24 minutes in, Booker looked at the time and said, “We are way behind the schedule of where we wanted to be at this point.” But he didn’t immediately move to wrap things up.

“And so to obey my staff, as senators are told to do, I want to move quickly to housing issues,” he said.

Booker paused for a brief prayer by the Senate chaplain at noon, following a longstanding Senate rule. Chaplain Barry Black specifically thanked “floor staff, Capitol police, stenographers, the pages and all those who have worked throughout the night.”

What are the rules? 

The use of long speeches to delay legislation, known as a filibuster, is a time-honored tradition in the Senate. But that’s not technically what Booker’s speech is, since he is not trying to block a specific bill or nominee.

Under Senate rules, unless special limits on debate are in effect, a senator who has been recognized by the presiding officer can speak for as long as they wish, according to the Congressional Research Service (CRS).

“They usually cannot be forced to cede the floor, or even be interrupted, without their consent,” it says.

There are a few requirements they must meet, however. For one, the senator must “remain standing and must speak more or less continuously,” the CRS says, which becomes more difficult as the hours pass.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., tweeted Monday night that Booker had employed an “interesting tactic” to that effect.

“Cory had a Senate page take his chair away to eliminate any temptation to sit down,” he wrote, just under three hours into the speech.

Booker employed another strategy at various points: permitting his fellow Democrats to ask questions, which is the only way a senator can yield without losing the floor. But it’s only partial relief: The senator must remain standing while others are talking.

“I will yield for a question while retaining the floor,” Booker responded each time a senator asked for his permission.

More than a dozen Democrats participated in the proceedings throughout Tuesday morning, including: Murphy, Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey, Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont, Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota, Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Sens. Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and Sen. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico.

What did other Democrats say?

The senators each spoke for several minutes about various issues Booker mentioned, from Medicaid to tariffs to national security, veterans affairs, agriculture and housing. They asked Booker questions — giving him time to elaborate on their topics of choice — and applauded his persistence.

“I thank the gentlemen for his fortitude, his strength and the crystalline brilliance with which he has shown the American people the huge dangers that face them with this Trump-DOGE-Musk administration,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said at the end of his second round of questioning on Tuesday morning, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency that Musk oversees.

Booker also heaped praise on his colleagues, talking up their accomplishments and shared work experience. While the tone of his speech was somber, there were some moments of levity between lawmakers.

At one point, Klobuchar — who had quoted Minnesota native Bob Dylan — asked Booker to name his favorite New Jersey musician, and he gracefully deflected.

Later, while responding to Schumer’s praise, Booker joked that “never before in history in America has a man from Brooklyn said so many complementary things about a man from Newark.” When Schumer responded by saying they were both New York Giants fans, Booker reminded him that the team plays in New Jersey and would discuss it no further.

“This is not a colloquy,” he said with mock seriousness as those in the room laughed. “I hold the floor, I do not yield.”

How long can these speeches go? 

Booker’s speech is a marathon effort: It’s not the longest to grace the Senate floor, but it’s climbing up the list.

His efforts surpass those of Murphy, who led Democrats in a push for gun control legislation that lasted 15 hours after the Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016. Booker was by his side for that entire speech and said Tuesday that Murphy had returned the favor.

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas held the floor for 21 hours and 19 minutes as he advocated unsuccessfully for defunding Obamacare in 2013 — more than eight hours longer than Kentucky Republican Rand Paul did when he filibustered John Brennan’s CIA nomination months earlier.

The longest filibuster on record was a 1957 speech by then-Democratic Sen. Strom Thurmond of South Carolina — in opposition to the Civil Rights Act — that lasted for 24 hours and 18 minutes.

Media reported at the time that Thurmond sustained himself with “diced pumpernickel and bits of cooked hamburger” and sips of orange juice. His aides set up a bucket in the cloakroom so he could keep a foot on the Senate floor if he needed to relieve himself.