In a fiery and marathon speech that has now stretched past 13 hours, Senator Cory Booker took to the Senate floor late Monday night to deliver a blistering critique of President Donald Trump and his staffers on what Booker calls the GOP’s “willful erosion of democracy.” The New Jersey Democrat, known for his impassioned oratory, has vowed to continue speaking “as long as it takes” to sound the alarm on what he describes as a “slow-moving constitutional crisis.”

Booker’s filibuster-style address comes as Senate Republicans rally behind Trump amid renewed scrutiny over his role in the January 6 Capitol insurrection and recent legal efforts to disqualify him from the 2024 ballot. While the speech holds no procedural weight, it signals a sharpened Democratic strategy to counter what they see as the normalization of extremism. Booker’s speech, now entering its 15th hour at the time of this article’s publication, marks one of the longest Senate floor speeches in recent history—and a defining moment in the escalating battle over the future of American democracy. 

"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 an X video that was posted before the filibuster moment began. "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 oration aimed at Trump’s actions on various issues, including public health, economic security, foreign affairs, and constitutional infringements. 

"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." 

A few hours before this article’s publishing, Minority House Leader Chuck Schumer temporarily took over for Booker for a few minutes, likely to give him a slight reprieve. But shortly after, Booker returned to his post. This filibuster is nearing one of the longest filibusters in American history, second only to Senator Strom Thurmond’s 24-hour speech in 1957. A staunch segregationist, he took the stance to prevent the passage of the Civil Rights Act. 

The live broadcast of Booker’s speech can be seen on his YouTube channel here.