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🗣️⏱️🏛️🛑 WATCH: Sen. Merkley concludes marathon 22-hour speech protesting Trump amid shutdown

🤖 AI Summary

The video captures the conclusion of a nearly 23-hour marathon speech delivered on the Senate floor. The address was a protest against the President’s conduct and the ongoing government shutdown.

• 🚨 Authoritarianism is here now, not merely around the corner.
• ⚠️ President Trump is shredding the Constitution, which is the biggest threat to the republic since the Civil War.
• 🚔 Federal military deployments are occurring in cities like Portland, Oregon, over the objections of local leaders.
• ⚖️ The power of the government is being deployed to go after individuals perceived to be political opponents, demonstrating unequal injustice instead of equal justice under law.
• 💸 The plan is to replace a government by and for the people with a government by and for the powerful.
• 📰 There are reported attacks on the press and a politicization of the Justice Department.
• 🏥 The government shutdown is a strategy to continue slashing Americans’ health care.

🤔 Evaluation

• 📉 Weighing the Economic Impact of the Shutdown: The senator’s protest occurred on the 22nd day of the government shutdown. 📊 Third-party analysis from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on the similar, longer shutdown of 2018-2019 estimated an $11billioncosttotheU.S.economy,withapermanentlossofabout$3 billion. 💰 This CBO data supports the claim that the shutdown carries a high cost to the nation, irrespective of the political intent claimed by the speaker (slashing health care) or his opponents (patting themselves on the back).

• ⚖️ Weighing the Claim of Constitutional Crisis: The speech strongly asserted that President Trump was “shredding our constitution” and that the country was in the “most perilous moment…since the civil war”. 📚 The presence of the book How Democracies Die on the lectern further contextualizes the claim within academic literature on democratic erosion by elected leaders, supporting the speaker’s chosen framework. 🏛️ While the CBO provides data on economic harm, organizations like The Brookings Institution focus on the structural harms of shutdowns, noting they weaken institutional functions and public perception of government effectiveness, which lends weight to the notion of institutional damage that goes beyond policy disputes.

• 🗣️ Contrast with Political Counter-Arguments: Republican Senate leadership dismissed the speech as “rubbish” and ineffective. 🛠️ The core Republican counter-argument, as documented by the Associated Press, was that the speech forced unpaid Capitol support staff to work overtime, thus aggravating the harm of the shutdown on federal workers.

• 🔎 Topics to Explore for a Better Understanding:

  • 📜 The Constitutional Role of Floor Speeches: Investigating the history and efficacy of marathon Senate speeches, which, like this one, are not technical filibusters but serve as a means of political protest to raise public awareness.
  • 📰 The Legality of Federal Deployments: Examining the legal arguments made by both the administration and local authorities regarding the deployment of federal agents or the National Guard to U.S. cities.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: 🗣️ What was the primary focus of Senator Merkley’s 22-hour speech on the Senate floor?

A: 🚨 The speech was primarily focused on protesting the actions of the then-President, which Senator Merkley characterized as moving the country toward authoritarianism. 🏛️ He repeatedly warned that the President was “shredding our constitution” and using the power of the government to retaliate against political enemies.

Q: 🚧 How was the speech related to the government shutdown?

A: 📅 The speech occurred on the 22nd day of the government shutdown. 🏥 Senator Merkley framed the shutdown as an attempt by Republicans to block a deal that would extend Affordable Care Act subsidies, effectively a strategy to continue slashing Americans’ health care. The marathon address delayed Senate proceedings and a vote on a House-passed funding bill.

Q: 📜 Was the 22-hour speech a true filibuster?

A: 🚫 No, the speech was not a filibuster in the official Senate procedural sense, which is intended to halt the advance of a specific piece of legislation. 📣 Instead, it was a protest or “talk-a-thon,” a symbolic act to seize the floor for a lengthy period to condemn the administration’s policies and “ring the alarm bells” about the state of democracy.

📚 Book Recommendations

Similar Themes (Authoritarianism, Democracy’s Perils)

• 🗳️🏛️☠️ How Democracies Die by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt: 📘 This book, a copy of which was placed on the lectern during the senator’s speech, details how democracies around the world have been dismantled through gradual means by elected leaders.
• 👑🚫📜2️⃣0️⃣ On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder: 💡 A brief guide that offers a set of practical steps for citizens to resist the rise of authoritarianism, drawing lessons from historical 20th-century European regimes.
• 🥀 Twilight of Democracy: 🐍 The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism by Anne Applebaum: ⚠️ A cautionary tale and scholarly analysis of how freedom-loving individuals can be drawn to authoritarian leaders, explaining the mechanisms of democratic backsliding.

Contrasting Themes (Optimism, Democratic Resilience)

• The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy by Anand Giridharadas: 💖 An insider account of activists, politicians, and everyday citizens working to fight for democracy, focusing on the people and movements actively seeking to re-engage the public.
• Strengthening American Democracy: Reflection, Action, and Reform by John R. Baker: 📝 A collection of concise essays that highlight the conflict between democratic ideals and reality, but includes specific, positive suggestions and proposals for institutional reform to achieve a “more perfect Union”.
• Citizens: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us by Jon Alexander with Ariane Conrad: 🔑 Argues that human history is moving from the “Consumer Story” to the “Citizen Story,” positing that institutions that treat people as empowered citizens, rather than passive consumers, can unleash collective power to solve crises like polarization and climate change.
• Democracy Unchained (edited collection): 🕊️ A collection of essays by experts and activists committed to moving the political conversation from anger and angst to positive and constructive change, articulating a strong faith in democracy’s ability to solve long-standing problems.

Creatively Related (Senate, Political Procedure, Legislative Deadlock)

• Advise and Consent by Allen Drury: 🏛️ A Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that vividly portrays the intense political machinations, deal-making, and high drama of a Senate confirmation battle, illustrating the power of the chamber.
• Master of the Senate by Robert Caro: 📜 The third volume in the biography of Lyndon B. Johnson, which details his masterful, often ruthless, use of Senate rules and procedure to advance his legislative agenda, providing deep context for the power of the Senate floor.