Rand Paul filibuster ranks among Senate's longest

Catalina Camia, USA TODAY | USATODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Rand Paul: 'There are some limits to filibustering...' After nearly 13 hours on the Senate floor, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., ended his filibuster blocking Senate confirmation of John Brennan, President Obama's pick for director of the CIA.

Kentucky senator was highlighting concerns about Obama policy on drones

Sen. Strom Thurmond holds record for longest filibuster

Paul%27s marathon lasted nearly 13 hours and delayed a final vote on CIA director

After nearly 13 hours of talking, Sen. Rand Paul's filibuster is one for the history books.

The Kentucky Republican comes in at No. 9 on a draft list of longest Senate speeches kept by the historian's office, clocking in at 12 hours and 52 minutes.

Paul's talk-fest delayed a final vote on the confirmation of John Brennan as CIA director and highlighted the senator's concerns about the Obama administration's policy on drones.

Paul fell more than 11 hours short of the record set by Republican Sen. Strom Thurmond, who protested the 1957 Civil Rights Act for 24 hours and 18 minutes. Paul joked he wanted to try and eclipse Thurmond, but he needed a bathroom break.

"I discovered that there are some limits to filibustering, and I'm going to have to go and take care of one of those in a few minutes," he said Wednesday night.

According to the Senate historian's draft list, Paul will come in behind Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia. The Democrat protested the 1964 Civil Rights Act for 14 hours and 13 minutes.

Paul's filibuster attracted attention because it was only the second time in recent history that a senator commanded the floor to talk at length on a subject. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., spoke for eight hours and 37 minutes in 2010 to protest tax legislation.

Senate historian Donald Ritchie said in an interview Thursday that filibusters don't typically end up killing a piece of legislation or blocking a nomination. In the case of both civil rights bills, for example, they eventually passed after Thurmond and Byrd stopped talking and ceded control of the Senate floor.

"The intention is to draw attention to an issue," Ritchie said. "What senators look for is press and public attention. All it does is delay action."

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., may not have agreed with the substance of Paul's remarks but he saluted the GOP senator for exercising his right to speak at length.

"One thing I learned from my own experience with talking filibusters: To succeed, you need strong convictions but also a strong bladder," Reid said. "Senator Paul has both."

Twitter said more than a million tweets were posted regarding the filibuster, with supporters using the hashtag #standwithrand. Other hashtags used included #filiblizzard, because it came on the day of a snowstorm forecast for the District of Columbia, and #paulnighter.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee said Paul's filibuster helped generate "donations in the high five figures."