Members of the ISU Democrats are staging a mock filibuster outside Parks Library to protest the ‘nuclear option.’

The ‘nuclear option’ is now being debated in the U.S. Senate to end the filibuster of judicial nominees.

Students began their filibuster Thursday at 12:34 p.m. as an off-shoot of the 384-hour Filibuster Frist protest that began April 26 at Princeton University in Princeton, N.J. and has now spread to campuses in more than two dozen states.

‘Obviously, the filibuster debate has been going on for a while. We heard about all the other filibusters going on and threw something together,’ said Erica Liabo, junior in pre-architecture, as the group set up Thursday afternoon. ‘We”re definitely flying by the seat of our pants right now.’

By Sunday, the area resembled a campground, complete with a tent and a sign reading ‘ISU Filibuster for the Filibuster.’ Participants, each speaking for an hour, took turns reading everything from ‘The Princess Bride’ by S. Morgenstern to ‘Profiles in Courage’ by former President John F. Kennedy.

Rachel Smith, sophomore in genetics, said the group plans to filibuster until the final showdown over the issue in the U.S. Senate, which could happen Tuesday. She said while there are not many students on campus to observe the protest, the 24-hour-a-day event could still be seen by many.

‘It”s going for such a long time that hopefully we will get our message to a lot of students,’ Smith said.

Mansoor Khadir, a group member and ISU alumnus, said some students have stopped to talk with the group. He said the filibuster has been tiring, but worth it.

‘I only got a couple hours of sleep last night,’ Khadir said. ‘As long as we prevent the vote, that”s what matters.’

Gabe Whitaker, former president of the ISU Democrats, said the group aims to increase public opposition to ending the filibuster to avert a vote in favor of upholding a rules change to end the filibuster.

He said the filibuster is important because it gives the minority a voice, and he speculated the end of the filibuster could prevent democrats from having a say over a potential Republican U.S. Supreme Court nominee.

Executive Director of the ISU Republicans Nicole Woodroffe said she thinks the mock filibuster is a clever idea, although she doubts its effectiveness.

‘There”s not a lot of people on campus right now,’ she said. ‘I don”t think a lot of people are going to realize that it”s going on.’

Woodroffe said there is disagreement among college Republicans about ending the filibuster.

‘I”ve got mixed feelings about it personally,’ she said.

The ISU Republicans are not planning a counter-demonstration.

According to Filibusterfrist.com, the demonstration in Princeton began outside the Frist Campus Center, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., who graduated from the school in 1974.