Independent Vermont senator plans lengthy speech today

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Bernie Sanders was off and running at 10:24 a.m., launching his protest of President Barack Obama’s tax deal with Republicans.

The Vermont independent expects to spend several hours today making his case on the Senate floor.

“You can call what I am doing today whatever you want,” Sanders said. “You can call it a filibuster, you can call it a very long speech. I’m not here to set any great records or to make a spectacle.

“I am simply here today to take as long as I can to explain to the American people that we have got to do a lot better than this agreement provides.”

The measure calls for a two-year extension of Bush-era tax cuts for all income brackets, extending jobless benefits for 13 months, reinstating the estate tax and cutting payroll taxes for a year.

Sanders had lengthy prepared remarks and some books on hand – including Robert Frank’s “Richistan” – when he took the floor this morning.

He targeted the plan’s tax breaks for the wealthy and what he considers an overly generous proposal on the estate tax, which would be reinstated at 35 percent for inheritances worth $5 million for an individual and $10 million for a couple.

“This is not a tax on the rich,” he said. “This is a tax on the very, very, very rich.”

Sanders' extended speech won’t block a vote on the measure. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday night filed a cloture motion, setting the vote to end debate for Monday afternoon.

But Sanders said earlier he would speak at length because Americans want serious discussion about the deal.