Democratic Senator Cory Booker from New Jersey just squashed a decades-long speech record on the Senate Floor. Booker spoke for 25 hours and 5 minutes, shattering the record previously held by South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond.
In an NPR interview following the speech, Booker admitted that his goal was largely symbolic, meant to highlight issues rather than directly influence legislation. While raising awareness is important, it does little to change the entrenched political realities of the Senate. While his speech had widespread media coverage, it had little political impact. If the goal was to effect change, then Booker’s approach was more performative than practical.
Breaking this record is particularly ironic because Thurmond’s record, which lasted 24 hours and 18 minutes, came as the result of him trying to halt a civil rights act in 1957. Thurmond was a widely known racist and bigot, so to have his record broken by not only nearly an hour, but also broken by a black man — one of only five currently in the senate, does partially close a darker chapter of American history.
However, aside from squashing a segregationist’s record, what exactly did Booker accomplish? Booker did, after all, pledge his time to disrupt “the normal business of the United States Senate for as long as I am physically able.”
Unlike the traditional filibuster, which aims to block legislative action, Booker’s address was a broad critique of the Trump agenda– intended to draw public attention rather than effect immediate policy change. Booker tries to emulate a mentor, the late civil rights icon and Georgia congressman John Lewis, but falls flat.
He began the speech by referencing Lewis, “This is the time to get in some good trouble, to get into necessary trouble.” He also used language and gestures Lewis was typically known for throughout his speech. This aligns with observations by some that the speech was designed to energize a democratic base, rather than try and get real change passed.
It’s also important to note that Booker has been polled as a potential candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in 2028, according to YouGov in which 27% of Democrats polled said they wanted Booker as the nominee. His extensive speech not only made headlines but put him once again in the national spotlight. Booker had a failed presidential campaign in 2020, this recent act of showboating— showing he had the “higher” moral ground over Trump and the Republicans– is certain to be interpreted as an attempt to re-establish his presence on the national stage ahead of both the midterm elections and 2028.
It’s also not the first time that senate Democrats have been criticized for grandstanding since Trump returned to the White House. The Democrats were criticized for videos released on a majority of Senators social media pages in which they each recited the same script word for word – including Booker.
Despite the speech squashing part of America’s racist past, the speech is also not only a postering stance for Booker to make but also a strategic one. Certainly one that will keep in the spotlight long enough to get him to the primaries.