Merkley Held Floor for More Than 22 Hours to Blast Trump (2)

Oct. 22, 2025, 12:43 PM UTCUpdated: Oct. 22, 2025, 9:54 PM UTC

Sen. Jeff Merkley delivered one of the longest-ever marathon speeches on the Senate floor to protest what he deems as President Donald Trump‘s threats to democracy, paralyzing the chamber for just under 23 hours.

Merkley (D-Ore.) began his speech around 6:21 p.m. Tuesday and ended around 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, continuing a trend this year of Democrats talking as long as they can to criticize the administration and Republicans. Merkley’s marathon is the third longest continuous speech held on the Senate floor.

Merkley’s speech comes as his state is in the spotlight over Trump’s troop deployment in cities led ...

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