Durbin Slams Republicans For Ignoring Russian Threat In 2020 Election, Questions Comey On President's Vulnerability In Light Of Personal Debts

WASHINGTON - During today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled "Oversight of the Crossfire Hurricane Investigation: Day 3," which featured former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) warned about ongoing Russian attempts to interfere in the upcoming 2020 presidential election, and slammed Republicans on the Committee for ignoring the threat by re-litigating the 2016 investigation into Russian election interference. "… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On DHS IG Report Detailing CBP's Inadequate Controls & Oversight Of FY19 Humanitarian Funding

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report that Durbin requested titled, "CBP Did Not Adequately Oversee FY 2019 Appropriated Humanitarian Funding." Today's report comes after Durbin led 24 of his Senate colleagues in a letter to DHS OIG last year requesting they inves… Continue Reading

Durbin: Confirmation Of Judge Barrett To The Supreme Court Is The Latest Republican Plan To Dismantle The Affordable Care Act

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today slammed Senate Republicans' reversal on filling a Supreme Court vacancy in a presidential election year and argued it is a thinly-veiled effort to destroy the Affordable Care Act (ACA) after numerous failed attempts to demolish the law in Congress. With President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) actively working to dismantle the ACA, Durbin emphasized the dangero… Continue Reading

Durbin Introduces Bill To Give Unemployed Americans Tax Relief

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Coronavirus Unemployment Benefits Tax Relief Act, a bill that would provide additional financial relief to unemployed Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic by temporarily excluding the first $10,200 of unemployment compensation from federal income taxes for tax year 2020. This amount is equal to 17 weeks of the now-expired $600 per week federal enhanced benefits included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Ac… Continue Reading

Durbin To Introduce Bill To Expand Protections For Puppies

WASHINGTON - This week, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) will introduce legislation to create stronger standards for veterinary care, housing, and breeding for dogs. The Puppy Protection Act will ensure that dogs within breeders' care have suitable and safe enclosures, access to outdoor areas, and regularly interact with other dogs and humans. "We must ensure that every breeder is raising dogs in decent, humane conditions and that these dogs receive the proper veterinary care," said Durbin. "I'm… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $8 Million For COVID-19 Vaccine Preparedness In Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded $6.2 million to the Illinois Department of Public Health and $1.9 million to the Chicago Department of Public Health to help prepare for an eventual distribution of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine, upon regulatory review from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The funding, which is from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic … Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On President Trump's Supreme Court Nomination Of Amy Coney Barrett

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement on President Donald Trump's nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court: "We are 38 days from Election Day. And we are 45 days from the Supreme Court taking up the case that will decide whether the Affordable Care Act will survive. President Trump and Majority Leader McConnell want to rush Judge Barrett's nomination through the Sen… Continue Reading

Durbin: Operation Warp Speed Vaccine Companies Do Not Back Up Certainty Of President Trump's October Timeline, Signal Likelihood Of Seeking More Controversial EUA Route

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after receiving written responses from each pharmaceutical company with a vaccine candidate under Operation Warp Speed to letters Durbin had sent earlier this month: "Americans seek a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine that can hopefully return a sense of normalcy to their lives. But the proximity of the election cannot dictate the science. The President's interference and political pressuring o… Continue Reading

Durbin: Senate Republicans' Reversal On Filling Supreme Court Vacancy During Presidential Election Year Is Thinly-Veiled Effort To Destroy Affordable Care Act

WASHINGTON - During today's Senate Judiciary Committee markup, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) argued that Senate Republicans' reversal on filling a Supreme Court vacancy in a presidential election year is a thinly-veiled effort to destroy the Affordable Care Act (ACA) after numerous failed attempts to abolish the health care law in Congress. With President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) actively working to dismantle the ACA's coverage and pre-existing co… Continue Reading

Durbin, Cortez Masto, Senate Dems Introduce Bill To Protected Unemployed Workers' Health Insurance During Pandemic

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), together with 13 Senate Democrats, today introduced the Worker Health Coverage Protection Act, a bill that would protect millions of unemployed or furloughed workers from losing their health insurance by enabling them to access subsidized COBRA coverage and keep their insurance. The bill would provide a 100 percent subsidy of COBRA health insurance premiums owed by unemployed workers, in nearly all employment-based … Continue Reading

Durbin Discusses Troop Withdrawal From Germany, COVID-19 Testing With Secretary Of Defense

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, spoke by phone today with Secretary of Defense Mark Esper to follow up on an August letter regarding the justification for the President's decision to remove nearly 12,000 American service members from Germany. Durbin again pressed Secretary Esper about the plan, its projected timeline, and about support for the Baltics and Poland. With no clear justification from the President or De… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Leaked For-Profit College Lobbyist Email

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) issued the following statement after U.S. News and World Report published an email from for-profit college lobbyist Steve Gunderson to for-profit college industry leaders outlining how to continue to exploit students, veterans, and taxpayers if Democrats control Congress in 2021: "The for-profit colleges' recent strategy memo tells all. Former Republican Congressman Steve Gunderson, now President of this group, has set his sights on exploitin… Continue Reading

Durbin Calls Out Senate Republican Plan To Dismantle Affordable Care Act Through Filling Supreme Court Vacancy

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined Senate Democrats in a series of floor speeches last night reflecting on the legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and reiterating that the Senate should comply with Justice Ginsburg's dying wish and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) own precedent to wait to fill the Supreme Court vacancy until after the next presidential inauguration. "She had one last request, one dying… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Grand Jury Ruling In Breonna Taylor Case

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the grand jury decision in the Breonna Taylor case: "True justice for Breonna Taylor would mean that she would still be alive today. The fact that even accountability for her death remains in question is wrong. This underscores that the status quo is unacceptable when it comes to matters of race and policing in America. We owe it to Breonna Tay… Continue Reading

Durbin Slams Trump Administration's COVID-19 Response, Urges Senate To Protect Health Insurance Of Unemployed Americans

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today slammed the Trump Administration for its response to the COVID-19 pandemic and spoke about the importance of helping unemployed and uninsured Americans, hospitals and health clinics, state and local governments, and small businesses. Yesterday marked 200,000 American deaths from COVID-19. "I listen as spokespeople for the Administration talk about the wonderful job that they've done in defending America from the coronavirus. The … Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth, Bustos Announce $5.8 Million For Chicago Rockford International Airport

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with U.S. Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17), today announced $5.8 million in federal funding for Chicago Rockford International Airport. The funding, which is from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), will be used for the construction of a larger cargo apron to meet growing demand. "Chicago Rockford International Airport is not only a vital transportation asset, it's an economic driver for all of Northern… Continue Reading

Durbin Meets With American Council Of Engineering Companies Of Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined the American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois by phone to offer an update on COVID-19 relief negotiations and infrastructure funding. Durbin spoke about Democratic priorities for the next COVID-19 relief package including nearly $1 trillion in funding for state and local governments nationwide to address revenue losses. On the call, Durbin also addressed the pressing need for a bold, federal investment in infrastructure, which will… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Call On Republicans To Stand For Science And Support Bill To Stop Political Interference In COVID-19 Response

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), and 30 of their Senate Democratic colleagues to introduce the Science and Transparency Over Politics (STOP) Act, legislation to fight back against political interference by the Trump Administration in the work of experts and the nation's public health agencies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. "The American people must have confide… Continue Reading

Durbin, Kaine, And Murphy Express Support For Belarusian Presidential Candidate

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Chris Murphy (D-CT) today spoke with Belarusian presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and expressed support for her candidacy and condemned the sham election that took place in August. Durbin, Kaine, and Murphy recently introduced a bipartisan resolution rejecting the discredited election results, condemning Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenko's crackdown on peaceful protestors, and calling for the imposition of sa… Continue Reading

Durbin: The Affordable Care Act Is At Stake With This Supreme Court Vacancy

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today warned that the future of the Affordable Care Act is at stake with the Supreme Court vacancy following the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin noted that President Donald Trump has made clear that he wants to strike down the entire Affordable Care Act. That is the position the Trump Administration has taken before the Supreme Court in a case… Continue Reading