Press Releases
Durbin Condemns Authorization Of Fruit-Flavored Vapes Fueling Youth E-Cigarette Addiction
CHICAGO - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today held a news conference to discuss recent actions by President Trump’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that will unleash a new wave of youth e-cigarette addiction. Durbin was joined by Dr. Deanna Behrens of Advocate Health Care’s Pediatric Critical Care program; Dr. Marcus Belin, who serves as a board member for the National Association of Secondary School Principals; and Rob Anderson, the CEO of the Respiratory Health … Continue Reading
May 28, 2026
Durbin Statement On Supreme Court Weakening Landmark Criminal Justice Reform Law
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement after the Supreme Court limited federal judges’ discretion under the compassionate release provisions of the First Step Act in rulings in Fernandez v. United States and Rutherford v. United States today: “The Supreme Court just significantly weakened a landmark, bipartisan criminal justice reform law in defiance of Congressional intent. “When we … Continue Reading
May 27, 2026
Durbin Gives Special Address To Joint Session Of The Illinois General Assembly
SPRINGFIELD - Today, the Illinois General Assembly honored U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) at the Illinois State Capitol. The Illinois House and Senate met in a rare joint session to salute Durbin’s nearly 44 years in Congress where Durbin addressed the lawmakers. In Durbin’s address, he shared how his life has been enriched by serving the people of Illinois and beyond as an elected official. The Joint Session was attended by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, House Speaker Emanuel … Continue Reading
May 26, 2026
Durbin Cracks Down On Crypto ATM Fraud
PEORIA - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined Peoria Mayor Rita Ali and the AARP of Illinois to discuss crypto ATM fraud prevention in Peoria and Durbin’s Crypto ATM Fraud Prevention Act, which seeks to crack down on cryptocurrency scams by strengthening protections around crypto ATM transactions and increasing transparency from crypto ATM operators. “Crypto ATMs are found in almost every town in Illinois. You have probably seen one in your local gas station or grocery … Continue Reading
May 22, 2026
Durbin, Grassley Urge Defense Secretary Hegseth To Immediately Release Congressionally Approved Funding To The Baltic Security Initiative, Ukraine
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Co-Chairs of the Senate Baltic Freedom Caucus, today sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to immediately release stalled Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 defense funding for Ukraine and $200 million for the Baltic Security Initiative (BSI). Durbin first created the BSI in 2021 and that was codified in the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. The letter was also signed by U.S. Senators … Continue Reading
May 22, 2026
Durbin, Duckworth, Kelly, Budzinski Call On Secretary Of Commerce To Finally Approve Illinois Bead Program Proposal, Allow Illinoisans To Connect To The Internet
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representatives Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) and Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13) led all Democratic members of the Illinois delegation in sending a letter to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick urging him to approve Illinois’ Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program Final Proposal immediately. While the Illinois Office of Broadband submitted its BEAD proposal in September … Continue Reading
May 21, 2026
Ranking Members Durbin, Raskin, Padilla, Jayapal Statement On Trump Administration’s Unlawful Refugee Consultation With Congress
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee; U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration; U.S. Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD-08), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee; and U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA-07), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and … Continue Reading
May 21, 2026
Durbin Questions NIH Director, Rips Trump Administration For Bowing To Big Tobacco & Endangering Children
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today questioned the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Dr. Jay Bhattacharya about the Trump Administration’s failure to protect children from nicotine addiction and exposure to toxic chemicals as Big Tobacco continues to push kid-friendly flavored e-cigarettes. Durbin’s questioning followed the Trump Administration’s outrageous recent actions, including authorizing … Continue Reading
May 21, 2026
Durbin, Hirono Call On Department Of Education To Strengthen Proposed Gainful Employment Rule
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) submitted a public comment in response to the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) proposed rule to establish a postsecondary education accountability framework. In their letter, the Senators noted that while they support the new rule’s “earnings premium” metric, they believe that the rule does not go far enough to weed out postsecondary programs, including those at for-profit colleges, that fail to … Continue Reading
May 21, 2026
Durbin Calls For Release Of Chicago High School Senior Currently Detained By ICE Despite His Pending Asylum Case And Lack Of Criminal Record
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling for the release of Ricardo Hernandez-Navarette, a high school senior in Chicago who was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) alongside his mother when they attended a routine check-in for their family’s pending asylum case. Durbin also reprimanded the Trump Administration for continuing its cruel mass deportation … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Demands Information Regarding President Trump’s Nearly $2 Billion Slush Fund For January 6 Insurrectionists & Trump Allies In Letter To Acting AG Blanche
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today sent a letter to Department of Justice (DOJ) Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche requesting immediate information regarding President Trump’s misuse of taxpayer dollars to line the pockets of January 6 insurrectionists and Trump’s political allies through a nearly $2 billion Department of Justice slush fund. The DOJ and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) settlement agreement also … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Calls For An End To The Federal Death Penalty
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, called for the end of the federal death penalty. Earlier today, Durbin and U.S. Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07) led 17 Senators and 20 Representatives in the reintroduction of the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act, bicameral legislation to prohibit the use of the death penalty at the federal level and require re-sentencing of those … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Questions Trump Nominees During A Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned judicial nominees during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Durbin first questioned Benjamin Flowers, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, about the 2020 presidential election. During Mr. Flowers’s time in the Ohio Attorney General’s office, he responded to an email from then-Missouri Solicitor General John Sauer about joining a brief that … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin, Pressley Reintroduce Bill To End Federal Death Penalty
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07) today led 17 Senators and 20 Representatives in the reintroduction of the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act, bicameral legislation to prohibit the use of the death penalty at the federal level and require re-sentencing of those currently on death row. This bill is particularly important today given that last month, the Department … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Speaks Against The Trump Administration’s Efforts To Restrict Americans’ Voting Rights & The Recent Supreme Court Decision To Gut The VRA
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined Senate Democrats in speaking on the floor against the Trump Administration’s actions to restrict Americans’ voting rights, as well as the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Louisiana v. Callais, in which the Court further eviscerated the Voting Rights Act (VRA) and held that Louisiana’s congressional map is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Durbin began his speech by … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Slams Trump’s Nearly $2 Billion Slush Fund For January 6 Insurrectionists & Trump Allies During Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing
WASHINGTON - During today’s Senate Judiciary Committee nominations hearing, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, criticized the Trump Administration’s misuse of taxpayer dollars to line the pockets of January 6 insurrectionists and Trump’s political allies through a nearly $2 billion Department of Justice slush fund. Today’s nominations hearing includes Benjamin Flowers, to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; … Continue Reading
May 20, 2026
Durbin Urges HHS Secretary Kennedy To Intervene And Push Back On FDA Allowing Flavored Vapes That Harm Our Children
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today sent a letter to U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., urging him to push back on the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recent misguided decisions regarding kid-friendly flavored e-cigarettes. Those actions include FDA authorizing the first-ever non-tobacco or menthol-flavored vaping products; FDA issuing final guidance permitting e-cigarettes that lack FDA authorization to remain on the … Continue Reading
May 19, 2026
Durbin Delivers Opening Statement On The Trump Administration, Supreme Court’s Continued Attacks On Voting Rights During A Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing entitled “Enforcing Callais: Implementing the Supreme Court’s Command Against Racial Gerrymandering.” The hearing follows the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Louisiana v. Callais, in which the Court further eviscerated the VRA and held that Louisiana’s congressional map is an unconstitutional racial … Continue Reading
May 19, 2026
Durbin Slams Trump’s $1 Billion Ballroom And Nearly $2 Billion Slush Fund For January 6 Insurrectionists & Trump Allies
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, criticized the Trump Administration and congressional Republicans for prioritizing a partisan reconciliation bill that will cost $70 billion in taxpayer dollars for President Trump’s cruel mass deportation campaign while Americans across the country are struggling to afford groceries or fill their gas tank. Durbin began his remarks by calling out … Continue Reading
May 19, 2026
Durbin Secures Promise From Secretary Of The Army To Protect Rock Island Arsenal From Drastic Job Cuts
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today questioned the Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing about the President’s Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget request for the Army. During the hearing, Durbin spoke with Secretary Driscoll about supporting Ukraine during Russia’s ongoing attacks on the U.S. ally; preserving the United States’ relationship with Baltic … Continue Reading