India, July 4 -- House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Thursday broke the record for the longest floor speech in House history under the "magic minute" rule when he spoke for an extraordinary 8 hours and 44 minutes.

His speech was believed to have been an attempt to delay a vote on President Donald Trump's sweeping tax and spending bill.

New Yorker Jeffries' speech exceeded the previous record of eight hours and 32 minutes held by then-Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

According to Bloomberg, Jeffries began his filibuster-style speech just before 5 am, turning the House chamber into a stage for fiery rhetoric. He continued his remarks, including reading letters from Republicans' constituents, well beyond his expected runt...