Merkley nearly breaks Booker's filibuster record, wins his praise for fighting 'Trump's authoritarian tactics'

Democrats pulled out all the stops on Wednesday to delay the vote on a short-term spending bill to reopen the government — the 12th time the Senate has considered the measure since the government entered a shutdown on Oct. 1.Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., embarked on a nearly 24-hour speech at 6:23 p.m. on Tuesday, concluding his remarks at 5:00 p.m. the next day. Merkley, 68, warned viewers of the authoritarianism he said had become a facet of the Trump administration."Be aware and worried about the possibility of the use of an emergency in order to expand authoritarian power. That’s the position