Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Justice and Civil Rights
Durbin, Duckworth Reintroduce Bill To Provide Equal Tax Treatment For Married Same-Sex Couples
WASHINGTON - During LGBTQ Pride Month, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), today reintroduced the Refund Equality Act. This legislation would ensure that legally-married same-sex couples - who until the U.S. Supreme Court's 2013 U.S. v. Windsor decision were barred from filing federal taxes jointly - are permitted to file amended tax returns back to the date of their marriage. The House Ways and Means Committee will … Continue Reading
June 20, 2019
Senate Judiciary Committee Advances Nomination Of Martha Pacold, Mary Rowland, & Steven Seeger To Serve As U.S. District Judges For The Northern District of Illinois
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance the nominations of Martha M. Pacold, Mary M. Rowland, and Steven C. Seeger to serve as District Judges on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, based in Chicago: "We are pleased that the Senate Judiciary Committee has advanced these three Illinoisans. They have the qualifications, integrity, and judgment to … Continue Reading
June 18, 2019
Durbin Meets With Acting Director Of Bureau Of Prisons To Discuss Prison Reform
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Acting Director Hugh Hurwitz to discuss the Trump Administration's implementation of the recently-enacted Grassley-Durbin First Step Act, inadequate staffing, and the overuse of solitary confinement. Durbin also received an update on the activation of the Federal penitentiary in Thomson, Illinois. "The goal of our criminal justice system should be to … Continue Reading
June 18, 2019
Durbin Opposes Anti-LGBTQ Trump Nominee, Matthew Kacsmaryk
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that he will oppose President Donald Trump's Texas district court nominee Matthew Kacsmaryk, who has repeatedly written in his personal capacity about his opposition to LGBTQ rights and the Obergefell case. Durbin also called out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for spending another week rubber-stamping President Trump's extreme nominees and creating a legislative … Continue Reading
June 12, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On Nomination Of John Kness To Serve As U.S. District Judge For The Northern District Of Illinois
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after the White House announced the nomination of John Kness to serve as District Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, based in Chicago. The Kness nomination accompanies the previous nominations of Mary Rowland, Martha Pacold, and Steven Seeger to serve on the Northern District of Illinois bench: "We are pleased that the President nominated Mr. Kness as … Continue Reading
May 22, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth, Kelly Introduce Resolution Establishing "National Gun Violence Awareness Month"
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) introduced a resolution in the House and Senate establishing the weekend of June 7-9, 2019, as "National Gun Violence Awareness Weekend" and designating June as "National Gun Violence Awareness Month." Every day in America, an average of around 300 men, women, and children are shot, nearly one-third of them fatally. Establishing a month to bring attention to the issue of gun … Continue Reading
May 16, 2019
Durbin Opposes President Trump's Deputy AG Nominee, Jeffrey Rosen
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after voting against President Donald Trump's nominee to be Deputy U.S. Attorney General, Jeffrey Rosen: "At this critical moment, we need a Deputy Attorney General who knows the Justice Department, who has experience in criminal investigations and prosecutions, and who is committed to the Department's role of enforcing the law independently. Mr. Rosen has no experience working in the Justice … Continue Reading
May 09, 2019
Senate Judiciary Committee Passes Durbin-Cosponsored Legislation That Supports Local Law Enforcement
WASHINGTON - At today's Senate Judiciary Committee markup, the Committee voted unanimously in support of two bills cosponsored by U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) that support local law enforcement - the Supporting and Treating Officers in Crisis (STOIC) Act of 2019 and the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization. The STOIC Act addresses the growing problem of law enforcement officer suicides by reauthorizing a grant program for law enforcement family support services and … Continue Reading
May 09, 2019
Durbin Opposes Jeffrey Rosen, President Trump's Deputy AG Nominee
WASHINGTON - In today's Senate Judiciary Committee markup, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) voted against President Donald Trump's nominee to be Deputy U.S. Attorney General, Jeffrey Rosen. Durbin argued that Mr. Rosen does not have the qualifications to be Deputy Attorney General given his lack of experience in the Department of Justice (DOJ) and lack of understanding of its basic law enforcement components. "I sat down with Mr. Rosen - a blank slate, I knew nothing about … Continue Reading
May 02, 2019
Durbin, Booker, Senators Call Out Trump Admin For Inadequate Effort To Combat White Supremacist Violence
WASHINGTON-Following last week's deadly shooting at Chabad of Poway synagogue, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chris Coons (D-DE), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Kamala Harris (D-CA) today called out the Trump Administration for shifting its approach to tracking domestic terrorism incidents to obfuscate the white supremacist threat. In a letter to Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Christopher Wray, the … Continue Reading
May 02, 2019
Durbin Votes To Override President Trump's Veto Of The Bipartisan Resolution To Halt Unauthorized U.S. Military Involvement In Yemen
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today voted to override President Donald Trump's veto of the bipartisan joint war powers resolution to end unauthorized U.S. military involvement in the Saudi-led war in Yemen. In March, the resolution passed the Senate by a vote of 54-46, and on April 4, it passed the House by a vote of 247-175, but today it did not garner enough votes in the Senate to override the President's veto. "Not only was this war never authorized as required … Continue Reading
May 02, 2019
Durbin Presses Senate Judiciary Committee To Bring In Mueller And McGahn To Testify On The Mueller Report
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today pressed the Senate Judiciary Committee to call Special Counsel Robert Mueller and Don McGahn, President Trump's former White House Counsel, to testify about Mueller's report on Russia's interference in the 2016 election. "Time and again it appears that the Senate Judiciary Committee, which used to be the leader on Capitol Hill on these issues, is stepping back and out of the picture … Continue Reading
May 01, 2019
Durbin, Capito Urge HHS To Implement Childhood Trauma Force
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) today urged the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to accelerate implementation of the Interagency Task Force on Trauma-Informed Care, a provision authored by both Senators that was passed into law last October as part of the federal opioid response. The bipartisan provision established a Task Force of federal agencies to set a national strategy to address childhood trauma and to promote trauma-informed … Continue Reading
May 01, 2019
Durbin Questions AG Barr On His Handling Of The Mueller Report
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned U.S. Attorney General William Barr on his handling of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election. "I find, Attorney General Barr, that some of the things you've engaged in really leave me wondering what you believe your role is as Attorney General," Durbin said. "I would hope that we can get to the bottom of this … Continue Reading
April 24, 2019
Durbin, Grassley, Booker, Lee Oppose Proposed Hiring Requirement That Undermines Criminal Justice Reform
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Mike Lee (R-UT), the lead sponsors of the recently-enacted First Step Act, today voiced bipartisan opposition to the Trump Administration's proposal to require applicants for federal jobs and contracting work to divulge their participation in criminal diversion programs. Diversion programs directly address the unjust and illogical consequences of a criminal conviction. These programs help … Continue Reading
April 18, 2019
Durbin Statement On Special Counsel Mueller's Report To Congress
CHICAGO - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement regarding a redacted version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russia's interference in the 2016 election being sent to Congress: "The Special Counsel's findings paint a very different picture than what the President and his Attorney General would have the American people believe. Special Counsel Mueller has provided a detailed and sobering … Continue Reading
April 10, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Push For Greater Federal Investments In Public Safety & Community Policing
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and a group of 42 Senators today in requesting a minimum of $400 million in federal funding, a 75 percent increase from the current funding level, for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Program to help local law enforcement bolster their community policing efforts. The COPS program was designed to advance public safety by addressing the full-time officer … Continue Reading
April 10, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth Join Colleagues To Introduce Sweeping Legislation To Address Harassment In The Workplace
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and U.S. Congresswomen Katherine Clark (D-MA-05) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07) to introduce the Bringing an End to Harassment by Enhancing Accountability and Rejecting Discrimination (Be HEARD) in the Workplace Act. The legislation takes critical steps to ensure businesses have more resources to prevent harassment and workers have more support when they seek accountability and justice, … Continue Reading
April 05, 2019
Durbin Discusses Highway Safety, Trooper Deaths With IDOT
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today spoke to Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Secretary Omer Osman and Paul Loete, Director of IDOT's Office of Highways, to get an update on what IDOT is doing to prevent roadside deaths in the wake of three Illinois state troopers who died this year after being struck by vehicles on the side of the highway. Durbin urged IDOT to spend resources to better educate the public about the state's Move Over law, and offered to assist at the … Continue Reading
April 05, 2019
Durbin: 'Move Over' To Save Lives Of Police & First Responders
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today paid tribute to three Illinois State Troopers who have been killed after being struck by vehicles on the sides of roads and highways this year. Durbin honored Illinois State Troopers Brooke Jones-Story, Jerry Ellis, and Chris Lambert, and recognized the efforts of Lucy Kuelper, the daughter of an Illinois State Trooper who created a Facebook page to raise awareness about Scott's Law, which requires motorists to … Continue Reading