On January 24 , 2019 , Bennet gave an impassioned , impromptu 25-minute speech on the Senate floor in response to comments by Senator Ted Cruz . He questioned the authenticity of Cruz 's concern about difficulties that the 2018 – 19 government shutdown was causing to first responders , recalling that in 2013 Cruz led a shutdown that lasted 16 days at a time when Colorado was experiencing flooding . In less than eight hours the speech became the most-watched Senate floor speech in C-SPAN history
Colorado was experiencing flooding
2013 Colorado floods
Michael Bennet