MERKLEY'S EPIC FILIBUSTER: Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) finally concluded his marathon speech on the Senate floor late Wednesday afternoon after 22 hours and 39 minutes. He was a few hours shy of Sen. Cory Booker's (D-N.J.) filibuster record, set earlier this year.
The Hill's Al Weaver reports that the three-term Oregon senator railed against "grave threats" presented by Trump, including the president's recent move to deploy National Guard troops to Portland.
"I've come to the Senate floor tonight to ring the alarm bells. We're in the most perilous moment, the biggest threat to our republic since the Civil War. President Trump is shredding our Constitution," Merkley said to open his speech.
After Merkley left the lectern to applause and brief remarks by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) praising him, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) slammed the marathon speech and wondered aloud what he and Democrats hoped to accomplish.
"The government is still closed, Capitol Police officers and Senate support staffers were here for the entire 22 hours are still not getting paid," the Wyoming Republican said.
▪ Roll Call: Merkley ties Senate in knots with marathon floor speech
12TH TIME'S (NOT) THE CHARM: Not long after Merkley concluded, the Senate again failed to approve a House-passed bill to reopen the government and keep it funded through Nov. 21.
The vote — another 54-46 tally — was more of the same on Day 22 of the government shutdown. As with previous votes, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Angus King (I-Maine) crossed the aisle to back the House-passed bill, while Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) joined most Democrats in voting against it.
▪ The New York Times: As Shutdown Drags and Trump Flexes, Congress Cedes Its Relevance
Speaking of the filibuster, Fetterman has suddenly become one of the leading proponents for Republican senators to deploy the "nuclear option" and carve out an exception to the Senate's 60-vote threshold to reopen the government.
"I think it would be rather hypocritical for us as a party now to suddenly love the filibuster," Fetterman told "Sunrise on the Hill" on Wednesday. "In that cycle that I ran, all of us ran on getting rid of the filibuster to enact exactly parts of our agenda. And now we can't pretend that we love it or pretend we just were in a much different situation just a couple years ago."
Chatter is picking up among some Republicans about overriding the filibuster, though Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) remains opposed to the idea.
THE SILENT TREATMENT: The Hill's Alexander Bolton reports that Senate Republicans are divided over whether Trump should negotiate directly with Democrats over their demands to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies — a key impasse in the shutdown fight.
While Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) says Trump should talk to Democrats to lay the groundwork for a post-shutdown deal, other Republican leaders think the president should continue to shun Democrats.
▪ The Washington Post: Health insurance sticker shock begins as shutdown battle over subsidies rages
Some Republicans, such as Sen. Dan Sullivan (Alaska), are quietly working with Democratic colleagues to find a deal. He said Trump could make a positive difference by talking to Democrats.
"If the president gets involved on big, complicated issues, it's always helpful," he said.
However, Thune, who has offered Democrats a vote on ObamaCare extensions, says there's nothing to negotiate until the government is open, a line that Trump has held — so far.
Recent polling shows Americans generally give Trump, congressional Democrats and congressional Republicans roughly equal shares of the blame pie over the shutdown.
MORE DRUG BOAT STRIKES: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced late Wednesday that the U.S. military destroyed yet another vessel accused of trafficking drugs, after confirming a separate strike earlier in the day. Hegseth said the combined strikes, both of which occured in the Pacific, killed five alleged "narco-terrorists."
The strikes mark the eighth and ninth vessels the U.S. has targeted since September, killing dozens of people in the process. The latest strikes were the first in the Eastern Pacific. Previous strikes hit boats in the Caribbean Sea, in the Atlantic and off the coast of Venezuela.
"Narco-terrorists intending to bring poison to our shores, will find no safe harbor anywhere in our hemisphere," Hegseth posted on X. "Just as Al Qaeda waged war on our homeland, these cartels are waging war on our border and our people. There will be no refuge or forgiveness—only justice."
▪ The Guardian: CIA playing 'most important part' in US strikes in the Caribbean, sources say
The Trump administration has received some bipartisan pushback over the attacks. Rep. Adam Smith (Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, on Monday called for a hearing on the deadly strikes. Kentucky's Paul, who is a frequent Trump critic and was not invited to a White House luncheon for Republican senators on Tuesday, said Sunday that the recent strikes "go against all our tradition" in the U.S
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