New Jersey’s senior U.S. Senator, Cory Booker, made Senate history on Tuesday with a marathon 25-hour and 5-minute floor speech — the longest uninterrupted address ever delivered in the chamber. His goal: to elevate the voices of Americans who feel unheard, challenge President Donald Trump’s agenda, and warn against what he called a dangerous drift away from democratic norms.
Beginning at 7 p.m. ET Monday, Booker stood for more than a full day — no sitting, no bathroom breaks — sharing more than 1,100 pages of prepared remarks and over 200 personal stories from constituents. By the time he relinquished the floor Tuesday night, he had surpassed the previous record held by South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond, who spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes in 1957 to filibuster the Civil Rights Act.
Booker’s protest was not a filibuster in the formal sense, but a deliberate act of resistance. Framed in the spirit of the late Rep. John Lewis’s call to make “good trouble,” the speech targeted what Booker described as reckless actions by Trump and senior adviser Elon Musk, along with congressional inaction on both sides of the aisle.
“These are not normal times in our nation,” Booker said as he began his remarks. “And they should not be treated as such in the United States Senate. The threats to the American people and American democracy are grave and urgent, and we all must do more to stand against them.”
Booker made clear that his frustration extended beyond Republicans. He criticized a recent Trump-backed budget deal that passed with support from nine Senate Democrats, warning that it would deepen the deficit while handing tax breaks to the wealthy. “Things aren’t sitting right with people on either side of the aisle,” he later told reporters.
Throughout the speech, Booker was sustained by brief procedural pauses as fellow Democrats asked questions from the floor — a parliamentary tactic that gave him momentary relief while allowing him to maintain control of the mic. As the hours wore on, his live stream audience ballooned, peaking at more than 300,000 viewers across his platforms, including over 350 million likes on TikTok alone. His office received over 28,000 voicemails of support during the speech.
The moment wasn’t just political. It was personal. “I’m here despite his speech,” Booker said, referencing Thurmond’s record. “I’m here because as powerful as he was, the people are more powerful.” Booker, who is descended from both slaves and slave-owners, spoke candidly about his family’s history and the stakes he sees for the future.
As news spread that Booker was on track to eclipse Thurmond’s mark, fellow Democrats and members of the public filled the chamber. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the first Black party leader in Congress, stepped into the Senate to witness what he called “an incredibly powerful moment.” When Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that Booker had broken the record, the chamber erupted in applause.
In his final hours on the floor, Booker looked both weary and resolute. “We all must look in the mirror and say, ‘We will do better,’” he told his colleagues. “Maybe if we all speak out about the absurdity of some of this, then maybe we can stop bad things from happening.”
