WASHINGTON (AP) — Oregon Democrat Jeff Merkley has been talking on the Senate floor in opposition to Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch for several hours and plans to remain “as long as I am able.”
Merkley’s extended speech isn’t a filibuster and won’t delay debate or votes, but it’s part of Democrats’ effort to bring attention to the nomination.
Merkley was one of the first opponents of President Donald Trump’s nominee, citing Republicans’ 2016 blockade of former President Barack Obama’s pick. Republicans refused to hold hearings or a vote on Merrick Garland.
Merkley wrote on Twitter, “This is a stolen seat that demands as robust a resistance as we can possibly mount.”
On the floor, he called for Republicans to delay the vote as the FBI investigates ties between Trump’s campaign and Russia.
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