I'd just like to clarify some things about Senator Cory Booker's marathon Senate speech in protest of the present administration and everything they are doing to the American people.
Senator Booker was NOT allowed to sit down, eat, or use the bathroom during his speech. Sitting or leaving the room to use the bathroom would be considered yielding the floor. Eating would have interfered with his speaking and the person who has the floor must continue to speak, except when listening to questions that they will then answer.
He only took occasional sips of water.
The person who previously held the record for longest speech on the Senate floor did have bathroom breaks and also did things like read from the encyclopedia.
Senator Booker did not do that. His speech was to point out the damage that this administration is doing and he stayed on that subject.
Senator Booker's speech did reach many people. It wasn't a silly stunt that was done so that he could take the record for longest speech. He wanted to show the country that democrats will do something to bring attention to the problems we are facing. That democrats are listening to them.
Senator Cory Booker spoke for 25 hours and 4 minutes to "make good trouble."
ETA Thanks for all of the reblogs and notes! I hadn't wanted to dirty this post with the name of the former holder of the record for longest time holding the Senate floor, but there are a lot of questions.
Senator Strom Thurmond, a segregationist and white supremacist, held the previous record of 24 hours and 18 minutes when he filibustered the vote on the Civil Rights Act.
Sen. Thurmond had someone put a bucket just outside of the doorway to the cloakroom so that he could keep one foot on the floor while pissing into this bucket, to hold the floor.
Senator Booker would never disrespect the Senate, nor "bend the rules" in such a way.
Because of this Sen. Thurmond could drink coffee or anything else he wanted, as much as he wanted, to keep himself awake, soothe his throat, and keep his mouth from becoming dry.
Senator Booker limited himself to a few sips at a time from two glasses of water at the podium.
Also, Sen. Thurmond began his speech immediately before a vote was to be taken and his speech was specifically to delay that vote. That is the definition of a "filibuster".
Senator Booker's speech was not designed to delay or prevent any vote. He did not know how long he would be physically able to speak. Therefore, his was a speech, not a filibuster.
ETA2: Strom Thurmond did also temporarily yield the floor to a colleague and took a bathroom break at that time. He also had some rye bread and hamburger to eat.
ETA3: So sorry about all of these but I need to include just one more thing.
He read the voting laws of all 48 states (this was 1957). He read from a book called "The History of the Jury Trial" speaking for quite some time about things like the justice system of the Anglo-Saxons. He read from other books, he read from the Declaration of Independence, he read from the Constitution. He yielded the floor for someone to be sworn in. All kinds of things about his filibuster made Senator Booker's speech a far superior feat, not just because it lasted longer.
