House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries‘ speech against President Donald Trump‘s One Big Beautiful Bill Act is, at present, the second longest speech in the House of Representatives’ history.
The Democrat is speaking in the House as Republicans race to pass the president’s tax and spending bill before Friday.
The Context
On Tuesday, the Senate narrowly passed the bill after more than 24 hours of debate. Vice President JD Vance case the deciding vote. The legislation has returned to the House to approve the Senate’s changes. The president has set a deadline of July 4 for lawmakers to deliver the finished bill to his desk.
The more than 1,000-page bill includes about $4.9 trillion in tax breaks, budget cuts and new work requirements for Medicaid.
Photo by Aaron Schwartz/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images
In the early hours of Thursday morning, Republican Speaker Mike Johnson said he had secured the votes to advance the measure, having passed the rule 219 votes to 213. Pennsylvania moderate Brian Fitzpatrick was the sole House Republican to join the Democrats in opposition.
Jeffries, who began his speech at 4:53 a.m. ET, is benefiting from the “magic minute” rule, a procedural perk that allows party leaders to speak for as long as they want to. In contrast, other members of the House may speak for only one minute.
What To Know
Jeffries’ speech, which has now lasted over eight hours, is nearing the longest speech ever made in the House of Representatives.
That accolade belongs to former Representative Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California. As House minority leader, McCarthy tried to derail President Joe Biden‘s Build Back Better Act, a social spending and climate plan, giving a speech that lasted eight hours and 32 minutes in November 2021. The $1.75 trillion legislative bill passed 220 votes to 213.
As of 1:01 p.m. ET, Jeffries is in second place.
Representative Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, spoke for just 25 minutes less than McCarthy in February 2018—for eight hours and seven minutes—while serving as minority leader. She spoke about undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children.
Representative Champ Clark, a Democrat from Missouri, spoke about a tariff overhaul for five hours and 15 minutes in 1909, according to the House historian’s office.
Behind him was former Representative John Boehner, a Republican from Ohio, who ran out the clock by speaking for just under two hours in June 2009 in opposition to the cap-and-trade American Clean Energy and Security Act.
Still, these marathon speeches pale in comparison to some delivered in the Senate.
Senator Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, broke the record for the longest speech ever delivered in the Senate earlier this year.
In April, Booker gave a speech against Trump that ended after 25 hours and four minutes.
The previous record was held by Senator Strom Thurmond, who spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes in 1957 against the Civil Rights Act.
What People Are Saying
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in his speech: “I feel the obligation, Mr. Speaker, to stand on this House floor and take my sweet time to tell the stories of the American people, and that’s exactly what I intend to do—take my sweet time on behalf of the American people.”
Conservative journalist Nick Sortor called Jeffries’ use of the “magic minute” rule a “stunt full of crocodile tears” and accused Jeffries of “whining on the House floor.”
Representative Teresa Leger Fernandez, a Democrat from New Mexico, said Jeffries was “speaking the truth on the House floor” to show how the bill would “make regular Americans more hungry, sicker, and poorer.” She added, “The stakes couldn’t be higher.”
What Happens Next
At the time of writing, Jeffries was still speaking in the House.
Update, 07/03/2025, 1.01 p.m. ET: This article and headline were updated with additional information
