The Hill News

A leading Senate liberal waged an act of protest against President Obama's tax-cut proposal on the Senate floor Friday morning.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) â€" a self-described democratic socialist â€" railed against the plan in a lengthy floor speech that he said "you [can] call ... a filibuster."

"You can call what i am doing today whatever you want, you it [sic] call it a filibuster, you can call it a very long speech ... ," read a message posted on Sanders's Twitter account after he'd taken to the rostrum at 10:24 a.m.

{mosads}"I'm not here to set any great records or to make a spectacle," Sanders said at the top of his speech. "I am simply here today to take as long as I can to explain to the American people the fact that we have got to do a lot better than this agreement pr! ovides."

Sanders captured Washington's attention with his old-school filibuster of the tax deal. Media outlets buzzed about his speech and Sanders's name became the sixth most popular topic on Twitter. A nickname for his speech, the "Filibernie," went viral with Beltway reporters.

Most congressional Democrats have loudly protested against the tax-cut deal Obama struck with Republicans, which includes a two-year extension of all the expiring Bush tax cuts in exchange for a 13-month renewal of unemployment benefits. 

The tax-cut proposal is not up for a vote on Friday, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said he intends to bring it to the floor Monday.

Sanders has said he will do "whatever it takes" to block the deal, "including a filibuster." His speech Friday covered a variety of topics, including a detailed case for more infrastructure investment, corporate tax rates and the federal budget deficit.

The Vermont senator took aim at Wall Street bankers and the wealthy, who he says will be the beneficiaries of the policy.

“How can I get by on one house?” Sanders said. “I need five houses, ten houses! I need three jet planes to take me all over the world! Sorry, American people. We've got the money, we've got the power, we've got the lobbyists here a! nd on Wall Street. Tough luck. That's the world, get used to it. Rich get richer. Middle-class shrinks."

Two Democratic senators, liberal Sherrod Brown (Ohio) and centrist Mary Landrieu (La.), joined Sanders on the floor in colloquy to support Sanders. Both senators have said they oppose the Obama tax plan and Landrieu has called it "almost morally corrupt."

The record for the longest filibuster is held by the late Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.), who spoke for 24 hours in 18 minutes to block a landmark civil rights bill.

-- This post was originally posted at 10:37 a.m. and was first updated at 1:21 p.m.