Durbin Calls Out Republicans' As Trump Administration Slashed Funding For Mental Health Grants, Gun Violence Prevention Efforts That Had Bipartisan Support
“The next time the President or any of his friends go to Fox News and try to start scapegoating Democrats for the gun violence in Chicago, they should remember that the President and his billionaire cronies eliminated these successful, bipartisan grants,” Durbin said on the Senate floor
WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, spoke out against the Trump Administration’s cuts to critical mental health programs and gun violence prevention efforts. Despite strong bipartisan support for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022, congressional Republicans have remained silent about these disastrous funding cuts that erode efforts to mitigate gun violence.
“Currently, the number one cause of death for American kids and teenagers is gun violence. Not automobile accidents, not cancer. We need to treat this crisis like the national emergency that it is,” Durbin began his remarks. “Common-sense gun safety measures are overwhelmingly popular with the American people, even with gun owners, including banning high-capacity assault weapons meant for the battlefield, as well as universal background checks and requiring safe storage of guns.”
“But we also know that making communities safer requires addressing the root causes of violence,” Durbin said.
Durbin continued his remarks, reflecting on the third anniversary of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that resulted in the death of 19 innocent children and two teachers.
“On what should have been an ordinary school day, 19 innocent children and two teachers were gunned down in their classrooms by a man armed with an AR-15. After that horrific day, Congress came together on a bipartisan basis, a rare bipartisan basis, to pass the most significant gun safety reform in generations,” Durbin said. “We recognized that too many parents were losing children, and too many communities have been irreparably scarred.”
Durbin spoke about key components in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, including provisions that invested in breaking the cycle of violence by addressing mental health.
“When Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we agreed we must do more to prevent gun violence from happening in the first place. One of the most prominent provisions of that legislation was Congress’ decision to invest in using trained neighborhood leaders to break the cycle of violence,” Durbin said. “With $250 million in funding, we supported community violence interrupters from the South Side of Chicago to… Houston, Texas.”
Yet, previous bipartisan support did not stop the Trump Administration and unelected billionaire Elon Musk from axing federal funding for these critical programs. As a result of these cuts, organizations like Metropolitan Family Services in Chicago lost $3.7 million in federal funding. Prior to being slashed, these funds provided mental health training and job skills to hundreds of individuals who are most likely to perpetrate or be victims of violence. Because of these initiatives, homicides in the City of Chicago have decreased by 50 percent since 2021.
“Unfortunately, DOGE had a different idea when it came to preventing violence. Last month, the Department of Justice cancelled more than $800 million in violence prevention, public safety, and victim service grants. That includes millions of dollars in community violence intervention funding that was senselessly cut,” Durbin continued.
“Does Attorney General Bondi really think that eliminating these grants will stop the violence? Ignoring reality won’t stop the bloodshed that will occur without these funds,” Durbin said. “Does President Trump really think that cutting this funding makes America safer?”
“The next time the President or any of his friends go to Fox News and try to start scapegoating Democrats for the gun violence in Chicago, they should remember that the President and his billionaire cronies eliminated these successful, bipartisan grants,” Durbin said.
Further destroying the gun violence prevention efforts in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the Trump Administration has also rescinded $1 billion in mental health grants from schools that were included in the bill.
“After any mass shooting, many are quick to explain away the tragedy as just a ‘mental health’ issue, not the result of the fact that America has far too many deadly weapons,” Durbin said. “Yet barely 100 days into this Administration, they have dropped any pretense about mental health in dealing with gun violence. Apparently, preventing gun violence by providing treatment to children is just too much for them to take.”
Durbin concluded his remarks by pointing to an initiative in Illinois losing its federal funding without a clear justification from the Trump Administration.
“An initiative in Lake County, Illinois, received nearly $6 million in federal funds to recruit and train mental health providers to work in the schools,” Durbin said. “In an outrageous and unsubstantiated justification, the Department of Education claimed that these funds ‘violated the letter of purpose or Federal civil rights law’ or ‘undermined the well-being of students these programs are intended to help.’ There is no evidence of that.”
“Where is the outrage from those who joined in this bipartisan response several years ago? We took great pride in it. Democrats and Republicans finally agreed on something. Mental health counseling of children who are most vulnerable is a way to reduce gun violence. I still believe that to this day. But the Trump Administration says ‘no, we’re not going to invest in that.’
“You know what’s going to happen? There will be more gun violence… Innocent kids will die. Innocent people will die. People will say, ‘well, we just need more mental health counseling.’ Keep in mind, this Administration just eliminated the funds for it. What are they thinking?” Durbin said.
“Where is the outrage from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle?” Durbin asked. “That silence is shameful.”
Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.
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