08 February 2018 - Nancy Pelosi Sets House Record with Her Marathon Eight-Hour Speech Adocating for Dreamers
Nancy Pelosi’s filibuster-style speech tops eight hours in bid to force immigration votes
Ed O'Keefe, David Weigel and Paul Kane (The Washington Post, 07/02/2018)
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi commandeered the House floor Wednesday for a day-into-night marathon plea to Republicans for action on immigration, casting the fate of young undocumented immigrants in moral terms.
The 77-year-old Pelosi stood for more than eight hours, reading multiple personal stories from “dreamers” and citing Bible passages. Her speech ranked as the longest given by a member of the House of Representatives in at least a century, possibly ever, focusing on an issue that has vexed Democrats for months.
The speech underscored that Democrats lack the leverage they insisted they would have in spending showdowns with Republicans. Pelosi and others repeatedly promised immigration activists and the party base they would force a vote sparing undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children from deportation after President Trump rescinded the program in September.
Pelosi Held House Floor in Advocacy of ‘Dreamers’ for More Than 8 Hours
Sheryl Gay Stolberg (The New York Times, 07/02/2018)
Representative Nancy Pelosi, the House Democratic leader, took the House floor at 10:04 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday, intent on speaking about the young undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers.
Eight hours and seven minutes later, she quit talking.
Her marathon monologue — highly unusual for the House, which has no equivalent to the Senate filibuster — appears to have set the record for the longest continuous speech in the chamber, dating to at least 1909, according to the House historian. It tied up the House into the evening, delaying debate on a bill intended to spur competition in the mortgage market.
It also demonstrated, yet again, why Ms. Pelosi, 77, of California, remains one of the most enduring — and to many, infuriating — figures in Washington.
Pelosi sets record with 8-hour marathon speech on DACA
Daniella Diaz and Deirdre Walsh (CNN, 08/02/2018)
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke for a little more than eight hours to oppose the budget deal to lift spending caps and avert a government shutdown -- because the plan does not address immigration issues.
The House Historian's office told CNN that Pelosi's speech is the longest on record on the House floor, according to their records.
Pelosi started speaking shortly after 10 a.m. ET, and wrapped the speech a little after 6:10 p.m. ET.
Maxine Waters: Pelosi’s speech one of ‘most profound’ moments in history of Congress
John Bowden (The Hill, 07/02/2018)
Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.) praised House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) after her eight-hour speech on the House floor in support of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients Wednesday.
In comments to reporters published by the Washington Examiner, the California Democrat said that Pelosi's marathon speech borne using a House procedure called the "leadership minute" was one of the most profound in the history of Congress.
"We've had the opportunity to yield time to Leader Pelosi, and while she certainly came in to oppose this bill that we have before us, having yielded one minute to the leader is the most profound one minute probably in the history of this institution," Waters said.