Press Releases
Durbin: For Defrauded Student Borrowers, Secretary DeVos Is Secretary Scrooge
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, in a speech on the Senate floor, slammed Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' new methodology using Gainful Employment data for determining the amount of relief defrauded student borrowers should receive for successful borrower defense claims. This methodology would deny full relief to defrauded student borrowers. Durbin shared stories of three students who were defrauded by for-profit colleges, buried in … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Join Colleagues To Urge Passage Of Bipartisan Resolution To Recognize Critical Role Of Census, Importance Of Safe And Accurate Count
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senators Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) in introducing a bipartisan resolution to ensure the 2020 Census is fair and accurate. The resolution encourages individuals, families, and households across the United States to take part in the Census so that all communities can be counted. According to Forefront's 'IL Count Me In 2020' initiative, Illinois stands to lose at least $1,800 per year for each … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Durbin, Lee Introduce Bill To Allow Nonviolent Elderly Prisoners Eligible For Release To Home Confinement To Benefit From Good Time Credit
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mike Lee (R-UT), both original sponsors of the landmark First Step Act of 2018, today introduced bipartisan legislation that amends the Elderly and Family Reunification for Certain Non-Violent Offenders Pilot Program reauthorized by the First Step Act. The First Step Act reauthorized and expanded a pilot program under the Second Chance Act to place eligible elderly and terminally ill inmates in home confinement. The law allows the Bureau of … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Durbin Honors Chicago Civil Rights Icon Rev. Clay Evans On Senate Floor
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) honored the life of Rev. Clay Evans who passed away on November 27 at the age of 94. Rev. Evans was highly regarded as a Gospel legend and civil rights icon. "If you ever had the good fortune to witness the Rev. Clay Evans preach, you were lucky. With his rousing sermons, his soulful baritone voice, and the 'Ship' choir behind him, Rev. Evans was memorizing," Durbin said. "My wife Loretta and I … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Durbin: DOJ IG Report Is Clear - The FBI's 2016 Russia Investigation Was Not Influence By Political Bias
WASHINGTON- In today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Inspector General (IG) Michael Horowitz, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) confirmed that IG Horowitz found no evidence that the FBI's 2016 Russia investigation was influenced by improper motivation or political bias against President Trump in his report released on Monday. Durbin also called for IG Horowitz to report what the DOJ IG has learned about leaks from the FBI New York … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On MLB Announcement Of Extended Netting
WASHINGTON-Today, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that all 30 Major League Baseball (MLB) teams will extend protective netting next season: "With more foul balls being hit at high speeds into the stands than ever before, it was imperative for MLB to address ballpark safety at the Winter Meetings. Extending protective netting well beyond the end of each dugout will make the ballpark a … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Durbin Announces Support For FDA Commissioner Nominee Dr. Stephen Hahn
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, in a speech on the Senate floor, announced that he will vote to confirm Dr. Stephen Hahn, President Trump's nominee to be Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Durbin expressed his hope that Dr. Hahn will use the full force of the FDA to take action on the youth vaping epidemic, and work to ban all non-tobacco e-cigarette flavors, including mint and menthol. "Dr. Hahn may find himself in a compromised … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Durbin Statement On DeVos' New Proposed Methodology For Denying Full Relief To Defrauded Student Borrowers
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced the Department of Education has developed a new methodology using Gainful Employment data for determining the amount of relief defrauded student borrowers should receive for successful borrower defense claims: "This latest scheme by Secretary Betsy DeVos to penalize student borrowers is an outrage. The Department refuses to use Gainful … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Durbin to First Lady Melania Trump: Don't Abandon E-Cigarette Flavor Ban
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today sent a letter to the First Lady of the United States, Melania Trump, urging her not to abandon her interest and position on protecting children from the dangers of e-cigarettes. Exactly three months ago on September 11, the First Lady joined President Trump, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and then-Acting Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, to announce that the Trump Administration would ban all … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Durbin, Colleagues Send Letter To U.N. Convention And President Trump In Support Of Global Efforts To Combat Climate Change
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), sent a pair of letters today to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and to President Trump about the importance of combatting climate change. In the letter to UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, the Senators expressed support of its global efforts to thwart climate change. "Failing to address the worsening crisis of climate change will wreak damages on all Americans … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Resolution In Support Of U.S. Commitment To Paris Climate Agreement: "We Are Still In"
WASHINGTON-As international negotiators continue discussions at the 25th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Madrid, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA), today joined 13 other Senators in introducing a resolution to express support for the Paris Climate Agreement. The resolution notes the growing scientific urgency around the need for action to combat the climate crisis, and details the bold steps that … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Durbin, Blackburn To Burmese State Counsellor: We Urge You To Fully Cooperate With ICJ
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) today led a bipartisan group of Senators to express their concerns that Burmese State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi will publicly excuse the actions of the Burmese military, or Tatmadaw, at a meeting before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, Netherlands. The military likely conducted "genocidal acts" against the Rohingya in 2017, according to Marzukri Darusman, the chairperson of the United Nations … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Durbin Announces Fall 2019 Recipient Of The Ed Greelegs Scholarship Program
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced Alexis Ryckaert, a college senior from Taylor Ridge, Illinois, as the Fall 2019 recipient of the Ed Greelegs Scholarship Program. This scholarship, open to students from Illinois or those studying in Illinois, is an opportunity for the students to receive financial assistance while obtaining a first-hand experience in Senator Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. The program was created in honor of Durbin's former Chief of Staff who … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Durbin Statement on DOJ IG's Report On The FBI's 2016 Russia Investigation
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report examining the FBI's 2016 investigation into coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia's election interference efforts: "The non-partisan Inspector General's report concludes that the FBI's 2016 investigation into coordination between the Trump campaign … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Join Colleagues In Urging FCC To Prioritize Rural Broadband
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined Senators John Thune (R-SD), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and a bipartisan group of 44 other Senators in urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to prioritize sustainable rural broadband networks as the FCC considers new rules in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) proceeding. "If our rural communities are to survive and flourish, our rural constituents need access to services that are on par with … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Antioch, Illinois, Student Interns In Durbin's Washington, DC Office
WASHINGTON - Antioch, Illinois, native Teresa Furlong spent this fall interning for U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), working behind the scenes in the Senator's Capitol Hill office as an intern. Each year, close to 50 interns work in Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. "I started my career on Capitol Hill as a college intern for Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois," Durbin said. "I will never forget that day in February of 1966 when he agreed to hire me as an intern to work in his office. As a … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Forsyth, Illinois, Student Interns In Durbin's Washington, DC Office
WASHINGTON - Forsyth, Illinois, native Sam Stogsdill spent this fall interning for U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), working behind the scenes in the Senator's Capitol Hill office as an intern. Each year, close to 50 interns work in Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. "I started my career on Capitol Hill as a college intern for Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois," Durbin said. "I will never forget that day in February of 1966 when he agreed to hire me as an intern to work in his office. As a … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Frankfort, Illinois, Student Interns In Durbin's Washington, DC Office
WASHINGTON - Frankfort, Illinois, native Regan Sandberg spent this fall interning for U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), working behind the scenes in the Senator's Capitol Hill office as an intern. Each year, close to 50 interns work in Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. "I started my career on Capitol Hill as a college intern for Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois," Durbin said. "I will never forget that day in February of 1966 when he agreed to hire me as an intern to work in his office. As a … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Quincy, Illinois, Student Interns In Durbin's Washington, DC Office
WASHINGTON - Quincy, Illinois, native Oliver Hart spent this fall interning for U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), working behind the scenes in the Senator's Capitol Hill office as an intern. Each year, close to 50 interns work in Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. "I started my career on Capitol Hill as a college intern for Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois," Durbin said. "I will never forget that day in February of 1966 when he agreed to hire me as an intern to work in his office. As a … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Chicago, Illinois, Student Interns In Durbin's Washington, DC Office
WASHINGTON - Chicago, Illinois, native Mariel Turner spent this fall interning for U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), working behind the scenes in the Senator's Capitol Hill office as an intern. Each year, close to 50 interns work in Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. "I started my career on Capitol Hill as a college intern for Senator Paul Douglas of Illinois," Durbin said. "I will never forget that day in February of 1966 when he agreed to hire me as an intern to work in his office. As a … Continue Reading