Jeff Merkley said after his 22-hour speech that he had gone without a bathroom break or food due to dehydration and not having eaten beforehand.
Notes on verification
Confirmed by multiple independent outlets (AP/KTBS, CNN, ABC News) with consistent, near-verbatim details about Merkley's post-speech statements regarding dehydration and lack of food or bathroom breaks.
Sources
- Democratic Sen. Merkley of Oregon speaks for more than 22 hours to protest Trump amid shutdown (apnews.com)
- https://abcnews.com/Politics/democratic-sen-merkley-marathon-floor-speech-protest-trumps/story?id=126763514 (abcnews.com)
- https://www.ktbs.com/news/national_politics/democratic-sen-merkley-of-oregon-speaks-for-more-than-22-hours-to-protest-trump-amid/article_f0d3b099-3555-5299-9bc8-72b86520555f.html (ktbs.com)
- https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/22/politics/jeff-merkley-senate-floor-speech (cnn.com)