The vote on President Joe Bidenâs $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act was delayed for several hours as House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) delivered a speech that broke records for its length.
âI didnât even pay attention to the speech,â House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters on Friday.
She added, âI donât even listen to most of the speeches on the other side because theyâre not fraught with meaning or fact. So I donât have my computer get bothered with that.â
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On Thursday, McCarthy took to the House floor to deliver a speech that ran 8 hours and 32 minutes, which delayed the vote on Democratsâ spending package, as IJR reported.
A little over three hours into the speech, Pelosiâs office sent out a statement asking, âIs Kevin McCarthy OK?â
âWeâre glad weâre not the only ones who canât follow Minority Leader McCarthyâs meandering rant that has nothing to do with the Build Back Better Act,â the statement read. âTonight, Kevin McCarthy previewed Republicans very best attacks against the deficit reducing, inflation crushing Build Back Better Act.â
Finally, the statement added, âAs he hopefully approaches the end, weâre all left wondering: does Kevin McCarthy know where he is right now?â
Her office also included a series of tweets from reporters highlighting portions of the California Republicanâs speech, which wandered into topics other than the spending bill.
Before lawmakers voted on the package, Pelosi delivered remarks and took a shot at McCarthy over the length of his speech. She said, âAs a courtesy to my colleagues, I will be brief.â
In 2018, Pelosi set the record for the longest speech when she delivered remarks that lasted 8 hours and 7 minutes.
On Friday, the House voted 220 to 213 to advance the massive spending package.
Every Republican and just one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), voted against the bill.
