Press Releases
Durbin, Baldwin, Smith, Bustos Introduce Bill To Address Teacher Shortages In Low-Income And Communities of Color
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Tina Smith (D-MN), along with U.S. Representative Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17), today introduced a bicameral bill that would address severe nationwide shortages of early childhood and K-12 teachers that disproportionately impacts students from low-income backgrounds and students of color. Exacerbated by low pay, school leadership instability, and poor teaching conditions, schools in low-income communities struggle to retain … Continue Reading
July 23, 2020
Durbin Statement On Senate Passage of NDAA
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, today released the following statement after voting for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes authorization for $44 million for vaccine and biotechnology research related to COVID-19: "The Senate's passage of the NDAA shows that members on both sides of the aisle are committed to a strong national defense and to the … Continue Reading
July 23, 2020
Durbin Attempts To Pass Legislation To Protect Children Of Immigrant Workers In The Green Card Backlog
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, made a unanimous consent (UC) request to immediately pass the Protect Children of Immigrant Workers Act, a simple provision to allow children to keep their place in line for a green card and be protected from deportation until they can get their own green card. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) objected. Lee also objected to this unanimous … Continue Reading
July 22, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Join Senate Colleagues To Introduce John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and 45 of their Senate colleagues in introducing the bipartisan John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, a bill to restore the landmark Voting Rights Act, end the scourge of minority voter suppression, and help preserve the legacy of John Lewis - one of America's greatest civil rights heroes. In 2013, the Supreme Court's Shelby County v. Holder decision gutted critical voter … Continue Reading
July 22, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On Expansion Of DOJ Operation Legend To Chicago
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today released the following statement regarding the Department of Justice (DOJ) announcing an expansion of Operation Legend to Chicago, Illinois. Operation Legend is DOJ's violent crime reduction initiative with the stated goal to provide support and assistance to state and local law enforcement partners as they work to combat violent crime, and gun violence in particular. Durbin and Duckworth are set to speak with … Continue Reading
July 22, 2020
Durbin To Trump And Senate Republicans: Don't Rip Away Health Care For Millions During Public Health Crisis
WASHINGTON - As the Trump Administration and Senate Republicans continue to push the Supreme Court to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, which provides health care coverage for millions of Americans, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) condemned the Administration's reckless effort in the middle of a public health emergency. Durbin highlighted how the abolition of the ACA would be devastating to women nationwide by eliminating protections for pre-existing conditions, allowing insurance companies … Continue Reading
July 22, 2020
Durbin Speaks With FDA Commissioner About COVID-19 Vaccine Development
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) spoke by phone with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn about the research and approval process for COVID-19 vaccine candidates under Operation Warp Speed. On the call, Durbin pressed Hahn about maintaining the integrity of the FDA's safety and efficacy standard, and not cutting corners or permitting political interference in the effort to quickly develop a vaccine-especially given the controversy surrounding President … Continue Reading
July 22, 2020
Durbin Attempts To Pass Legislation To Protect Immigrant Workers & Children In The Green Card Backlog
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today made two unanimous consent (UC) requests to protect immigrant workers and their children who are stuck in the green card backlog. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) objected to both requests. First, Durbin asked for unanimous consent to pass the Lee-Durbin bipartisan agreement, which amends Lee's Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act. … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin Statement On President Trump's Memorandum Seeking To Exclude Undocumented Immigrants From Census Count For Congressional Apportionment
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement regarding President Donald Trump's memorandum that seeks to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census count for the purpose of congressional apportionment: "Article I, Section 2 and the 14th Amendment in the Constitution explicitly require the federal government to conduct a census that counts the 'whole number of persons in each State.' "Just last year, the Supreme Court recognized … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Call Out President Trump On Reports Of Plan To Send Secret police TO Chicago
WASHINGTON - Following reports that President Donald Trump wants to send federal agents into cities, including Chicago, to conduct policing activities that are traditionally handled by local law enforcement, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today sent a letter to President Trump calling on him to refrain from taking this action, which is opposed by Governor Pritzker, Mayor Lightfoot, and other local leaders. "With the right leadership, federal law enforcement can … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin Introduces Bill To Combat Opioid Addiction As Nation Sees Rise In Overdose Deaths Amid COVID-19
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced the Addiction Prevention and Responsible Opioid Practices Act, a bill to stem the opioid epidemic by expanding telehealth and treatment access and reining in the excessive volume of addictive opioids on the market. According to a recent analysis of opioid use in America, 128 people die in the United States each day due to opioid overdose and an estimated 1.7 million Americans suffer from substance use disorders related to prescribed … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
With Federal Benefits Set To Expire This Month, Durbin Calls On Senator McConnell To Bring House-Passed House Heroes Act To The Floor
WASHINGTON - With enhanced unemployment benefits set to expire at the end of the month, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to bring the House-passed Heroes Act to the floor for a vote in the Senate. The House passed the Heroes Act more than nine weeks ago. In a speech on the Senate floor, Durbin called out Senate Republicans for their delay in acting on additional COVID-19 relief legislation while cases continue to … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin: We Must Honor John Lewis' Life By Protecting The Right To Vote For All Americans
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) honored the life of U.S. Representative John Lewis (D-GA-05), a civil rights icon who risked his life to march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, to protest the right to vote, and who fought for racial justice and equality in America throughout his entire life. "For a man who had witnessed the depths of hatred and despair, John Lewis was one of the most hopeful people I have ever … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin: Sending In Secret Police To Cities Like Portland & Chicago Is Unacceptable & Un-American
WASHINGTON - Following reports that President Donald Trump wants to send federal agents into cities, including Chicago, to conduct policing activities that are traditionally handled by local law enforcement, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on the Senate to pass legislation to block the Trump Administration from deploying federal forces as a shadowy paramilitary against Americans. The Preventing Authoritarian Policing Tactics on America's Streets Act, which was also … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin Joins Leahy, Murray, Tester To Call On President Trump To Increase PPE And Testing Capacity
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Patty Murray (D-WA) and Jon Tester (D-MT) to call on President Trump to utilize resources already passed by Congress and signed into law to increase production of personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing capacity. Durbin, Leahy, Murray, and Tester also are leading Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Committee. In a letter to President Trump, Durbin, Leahy, Murray and Tester wrote: "It was … Continue Reading
July 21, 2020
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $739 Million In Hospital Funding For COVID-19 Care In Illinois
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Illinois will receive a total of $739,971,747 in federal funding to support hospitals in Illinois providing COVID-19 care in communities across Illinois. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Health Provider Relief Fund and will help support more than 60 hospitals serving areas treating a large number of COVID-19 patients - many of which are communities of … Continue Reading
July 20, 2020
Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Resolution Opposing Russia's Inclusion In G7
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the bipartisan Senate Ukraine Caucus, today led 12 of his colleagues in introducing a resolution opposing Russia's inclusion into the Group of Seven (G7). Despite Russia's occupation of Ukraine, its destabilizing actions against the U.S. and other democracies worldwide, and the recent reporting that Russia offered bounties to target American troops deployed to Afghanistan, President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for … Continue Reading
July 17, 2020
Durbin Discusses Racial Disparities In Federal Investment, Health Care With Illinois Mayors
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke with the mayors of communities of color across Illinois about the racial disparities in federal investment, health care access, and economic support. On the call, Durbin discussed state and local fiscal relief funding in the House-passed Heroes Act that would help Illinois recover from the estimated $10 billion in state and local revenues Illinois could lose by next summer. Durbin also spoke about the remaining $130 billion in Paycheck … Continue Reading
July 17, 2020
Durbin Statement On Federal Court Ordering Trump Admin To Reopen DACA Program For New Applicants
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee and author of the Dream Act, today released the following statement regarding the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland's order for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to fully restore Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which includes reopening DACA to eligible individuals who have been unable to apply due to President Trump's … Continue Reading
July 17, 2020
Durbin Speaks To Chicago Bar Association About Justice In Policing Act
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today spoke to the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) Young Lawyers Section's (YLS) Racial Justice Coalition via webcast about the Justice in Policing Act of 2020, a comprehensive approach to hold police accountable for misconduct, change the culture of law enforcement, and build trust between law enforcement and our communities. "The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and many other … Continue Reading