“Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the Democratic leader, passed the four-hour mark on Thursday morning in a marathon speech in the House opposing Republicans’ signature legislation carrying out President Trump’s domestic agenda,” the New York Times reports.
“Beginning his remarks before dawn, Mr. Jeffries said that he was ‘planning to take my sweet time’ with his speech.”
“It was not a filibuster, the Senate tactic that allows a member to speechify for unlimited time, delaying action indefinitely. But Mr. Jeffries was making use of his prerogative as a leader to stretch his allotted 60 seconds of speaking time for far longer, in a House tradition known as a ‘magic minute.’ In doing so, he was attempting to seize a pivotal moment for Democrats — who have toiled to find a cohesive strategy, message and messenger for countering Mr. Trump — to make a forceful case against the president and his agenda.”
Punchbowl News: “If Hakeem Jeffries speaks until 1:26 p.m., he will break the record for the longest floor speech. That record is held by Kevin McCarthy. McCarthy spoke for eight hours and 32 minutes.”
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