Happy “Liberation Day” eve to all those who celebrate, and can someone please get Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey a glass of water?

Booker began a marathon speech at 7:30 p.m. last night to highlight what he calls the “recklessness” of the Trump administration’s policies. Fifteen hours later, he is somehow still talking. He’s still well short of the record for the longest speech on the Senate floor – that title goes to Republican Sen. Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, who spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes – but it’s an impressive feat.

Elsewhere in the Senate, some Republicans are gearing up to try to kneecap President Donald Trump’s existing tariffs the day before “Liberation Day” – he’s expected to make his sweeping tariffs announcement tomorrow.

And today is also a litmus test for Trump and Elon Musk, with voters going to the polls in Wisconsin and Florida for the first elections since November. Voters in Florida could imperil the GOP’s fragile House majority and voters in Wisconsin will pick a judge for the state’s high court as billionaires like Musk and George Soros spend big to sway their votes.

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Here’s the lunchtime lowdown, which U.S. News will be publishing each weekday to keep track of the goings-on in Washington and beyond:

In a video recorded before he took the Senate floor, Sen. Cory Booker said he would speak “about what Donald Trump is doing to our nation” for “as long as I possibly can.” Booker has decried the Trump administration’s spending cuts, tariffs and other policies throughout his speech, which is less of a filibuster and more of a symbolic protest, as Booker is not attempting to block or stall any legislation. Read more.

Employees at the Health and Human Services Department began receiving their dismissal notices today as part of the massive staff reduction Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced last week. Nearly a quarter of the department’s more than 80,000 employees are headed out the door – 10,000 via layoffs and another 10,000 via early retirement and buyouts. Read more.

Senate Republicans could deliver a (glancing) blow to Trump’s trade policy by siding with Democrats on a resolution aimed at undermining the administration’s 25% tariffs on Canada. Four Republican Senators would need to vote for the resolution for it to pass, and at least two – Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky – are reportedly inclined to back it. The effort is largely symbolic though, as the matter is likely dead in the House. Read more.

Voters in Wisconsin head to the polls today to determine the ideological makeup of the state’s Supreme Court. The race has attracted big money, including from the world’s richest man: Musk cut two $1 million checks during a visit this weekend, adding to what could be a more than $100 million judicial election. Read more.

Special elections in Florida to replace former Republican Reps. Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz, the latter the embattled national security adviser at the center of Signalgate, will be MAGA’s first test since Trump’s victory in November. At stake is the extent of the GOP’s narrow margin in the House, with Waltz’s seat becoming a wild card that prompted Trump to wade in and may have moved him to withdraw his own Cabinet nominee. Read more.