Durbin, Braun Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Establish Rural Transportation Infrastructure Office

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Mike Braun (R-IN), both members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today introduced the Rural Transportation Equity Act of 2021, which would improve federal support for transportation and infrastructure needs of rural communities in America. Current programs to assist rural areas are handled by various offices and agencies throughout the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). Durbin and Bra… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Secretary Of Defense And Chairman Of Joint Chiefs Of Staff At Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing about the Department of Defense's Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) Budget Request, questioned Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley. Durbin began his questioning asking about the importance of keeping our military nonpartisan. "Two of the pillars of our national defense are civilian control of the military and our ambition, goal, or demand that … Continue Reading

Durbin, Grassley Statement On GAO Report On Prescription Drug Advertising's Impact On Medicare Spending

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) today released the following statement after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report they had requested entitled, "Prescription Drugs: Medicare Spending on Drugs with Direct-to-Consumer Advertising," which found direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements of prescription drugs drive drastic increases in Medicare costs: "This GAO report found that Pharma's $6 billon annual spending s… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Supreme Court Ruling Dismissing Challenge To Affordable Care Act

WASHINGTON - Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement after the Supreme Court dismissed a case challenging the Affordable Care Act: "Families across America can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that yet another Republican effort to overturn the ACA was rejected. Health coverage and pre-existing condition protections for millions of Americans are here to stay." -30-… Continue Reading

Judiciary Committee Advances Nominations Of Tiffany Cunningham, Anne Milgram, & Kenneth Polite, Jr.

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee today advanced the nominations of Tiffany P. Cunningham, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Federal Circuit, Anne Milgram, to be Administrator of Drug Enforcement, and Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr., to be an Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Criminal Division. Durbin delivered opening remarks highlighting the nominees' qualifications and experience. Cunningham received a vote of 16-6; Milgram received a unanimous voice … Continue Reading

Judiciary Committee Democrats Urge DOJ To Provide Committee OLC Memo On President Trump's Obstruction Of Mueller Investigation

WASHINGTON - Today, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-IL) led all Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats on a letter to Attorney General (AG) Merrick Garland expressing serious concerns about the Trump-era Department of Justice's (DOJ) apparent misrepresentations to a federal court regarding the March 24, 2019 Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) memorandum on President Trump's obstruction of Special Counsel Mueller's investigation. In their letter, Durbin and Senate Judiciary Committee Dem… Continue Reading

Durbin Urges Secretary Of Education Cardona To Take On For-Profit Colleges And Help Struggling Student Borrowers

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services hearing about the Department of Education's Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) Budget Request, urged Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to bring greater accountability and oversight to the for-profit college industry. In his remarks, Durbin highlighted that for-profit colleges and universities enroll just eight percent of all post-secondary students … Continue Reading

Durbin Commemorates Juneteenth, Calls Out Filibuster As Tool To Hinder Civil Rights Legislation

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) took to the Senate floor today to commemorate Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of slavery in America. In his speech, Durbin told the story of the Emancipation Proclamation and acknowledged the long legacy of slavery, perpetuated by a contradiction at the center of our nation's founding principle that all people "are created equal." "Halfway through that war, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation P… Continue Reading

Durbin: Biden Is Reasserting America's Role As A Champion Of Democracy

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), today spoke on the Senate floor about President Biden's first foreign trip where he met with G-7 and NATO countries, as well as with Russian President Vladimir Putin today. Durbin said that America's leadership and its example are critical in leading shared efforts to halt the COVID pandemic, tackle climate change, push back on rogue nations, and maintain global norms of behavior. "Perhaps what was most important was that President Bide… Continue Reading

Durbin, Capito, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation To Address Childhood Trauma

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV), along with U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), today introduced bipartisan legislation to increase support for children who have been exposed to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and trauma, including witnessing community violence, parental addiction, or abuse. The Resilience Investment, Support, and Expansion (RISE) from Trauma Act dramatically increases funding … Continue Reading

Durbin Meets With Vice President Harris, DACA Recipients, And TPS Holders

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and lead sponsor of the Dream Act, met with Vice President Kamala Harris, Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), and a group of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders to mark the 9th anniversary of the announcement of DACA and underscore the need for Congress to pass the Dream and Promise Act. The DACA recipients and TPS holders were all immig… Continue Reading

Durbin Slams McConnell's Dismissal Of Congressional Investigation Into Trump's DOJ Alleged Abuse of Power

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered a speech on the Senate floor slamming U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) dismissal of calls to hold a congressional investigation of reports that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) under the Trump Administration issued subpoenas involving members of Congress, their staff, and family members. In his remarks, Durbin called out McConnell's hypocrisy in minimizing t… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Witnesses At American Dream And Promise Act Judiciary Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - During today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled, "H.R.6, American Dream and Promise Act of 2021," U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Manuel Bernal Mejia, a DACA recipient, and Leon Rodriguez, former United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director under President Obama, about the importance of passing the American Dream and Promise Act. Durbin asked Dr. Bernal Mejia whether or not he's had … Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Urge SBA To Speed Up Relief For Struggling Live Event Venues

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and 51 of their colleagues in sending a letter to Small Business Administration Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman urging her to disburse Shuttered Venue Operator Grant funding to eligible live entertainment venues as soon as possible. The legislation that created this program, the Save Our Stages Act, was signed into law nea… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement At American Dream And Promise Act Judiciary Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during "H.R.6, American Dream and Promise Act of 2021" Judiciary Committee Hearing. During his opening statement, Durbin highlighted the need for Congress to pass legislation providing a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and people living in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Key quotes: "It was nine years ago today when President Oba… Continue Reading

Durbin, Cicilline Announce Introduction Of Bill To Ban Child Labor On Tobacco Farms

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Congressman David N. Cicilline (D-RI-01) today announced the introduction of legislation to protect child workers from the dangers of exposure to tobacco plants, including nicotine poisoning. The Children Don't Belong on Tobacco Farms Act amends the Fair Labor Standards Act to prohibit children under the age of 18 from working in tobacco fields and coming into direct contact with tobacco plants or dried tobacco leaves by deeming this … Continue Reading

Durbin: Judge Jackson Represents The Best Of The Judiciary

WASHINGTON - Ahead of her confirmation today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) delivered a speech on the Senate floor in support of Ketanji Brown Jackson's nomination to be a U.S. Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit, highlighting her impressive career-from her judicial clerkships to her work as a federal public defender to her tenure on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Durbin called on his Senate colleagues to vote in favor of her nomination, empha… Continue Reading

Durbin, Grassley Statement On Supreme Court First Step Act Ruling On Low-Level Drug Offenders

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Tarahrick Terry v. United States, a case related to the interpretation of provisions of the First Step Act of 2018 (FSA) and the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010: "Obviously, we argued for a different result in this case. We had hoped a… Continue Reading

Durbin, Collins, Wenstrup, Underwood Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill To Make The VA Smoke-Free

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), along with U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup, D.P.M. (R-OH-02) and Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14), today introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to prohibit smoking at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The legislation would repeal an antiquated 1992 law that requires the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to furnish and maintain designated indoor or outdoor smoking areas. Supported … Continue Reading

Durbin, Judiciary Committee Democrats Demand Answers from DOJ About Subpoenas for Communications Data of House Democrats

WASHINGTON - Today, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-IL) led all Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats on a letter to Attorney General (AG) Merrick Garland requesting that the Department of Justice (DOJ) produce materials relating to the Trump-era DOJ's apparent decision to subpoena metadata of House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) Members, their staff, and family members, including a minor. The letter also urges AG Garland to provide the Committee with an imme… Continue Reading