Durbin Statement On Release Of Bipartisan Gun Safety Legislative Text

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the bipartisan group of Senators working on legislation to help keep America's children and communities safe from the gun violence epidemic released legislative text: "This bipartisan agreement will not end gun violence, but it is an important step towards making our nation safer. "I want to commend my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for working… Continue Reading

Durbin: Amid Putin's War, NATO Is Stronger Than Ever

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, condemned Vladimir Putin's unprovoked and unjustified war in Ukraine. Durbin highlighted the bipartisan meeting with Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), also Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, and members of the Ukrainian Parliament last week. They discussed how the U.S. Senate can continue to better support Ukraine through military, economic, and humanitarian assi… Continue Reading

Durbin, Portman, Blumenthal, Grassley Urge Department Of Defense To Send More Advanced Artillery Rocket Systems To Ukraine

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Co-Chairs of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, along with U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin urging him to send more advanced artillery rocket systems and ammunition to Ukraine, as the systems are vital in Ukraine's defense against Russia's brutal invasion. The Senators commended the decision by the Biden administration earlier… Continue Reading

Durbin, Schakowsky, Chicago Delegation Urge EPA To Expand Eligibility Guidelines For Clean School Bus Program

CHICAGO - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-9) today led 12 of their Illinois colleagues in sending a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan urging him to expand eligibility for the new EPA Clean School Bus Program (CSBP) to improve its accessibility to Chicago-area schools and correct additional oversights in the implementation process. The program, a $5 billion effort established under the bipartisan I… Continue Reading

Durbin, Tillis, Grassley Introduce Legislation To Improve Coordination Between USPTO And FDA

WASHINGTON -U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today introduced bipartisan legislation that would establish a task force between the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to improve communication and… Continue Reading

Durbin, Illinois Congressional Delegation Meet With Census Bureau Director On Illinois Count

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation today met virtually with U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert L. Santos about the results of the 2020 Decennial Census after Illinois was found to likely have been undercounted at a rate of 1.97 percent. During their meeting, Durbin pressed Director Santos to correct the undercount by incorporating the Census Bureau's Post-Enumeration Survey (PES) data into the Bureau's annual Population … Continue Reading

Durbin, Shaheen Meet With Evgenia Kara-Murza, Wife Of Russian Dissident

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, and U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe, today met with Evgenia Kara-Murza, the wife of Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza. During their meeting, they discussed his unjust detention and continued pressure to release him and other Russian political prisoners. The Senate recently passed Durbin, Shaheen, and Senator Marco Rubio's (R-FL) bip… Continue Reading

Durbin Urges Colleagues To Support Nominee To Lead ATF

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today urged his colleagues to support the nomination of Steven Dettelbach to be Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). Earlier today, Mr. Dettelbach's nomination advanced out of the Judiciary Committee by a vote of 11-11. Under the provisions of S. Res. 27, Leader Schumer must file a discharge motion on Mr. Dettelbach's nominat… Continue Reading

Durbin, Portman, Ukraine Caucus Receive Updates From Members Of The Ukrainian Parliament

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Co-Chairs of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, hosted members of the Ukrainian Parliament so that they could brief members of the Caucus on the latest events regarding Russia's unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine and how the U.S. Senate can continue to better support our ally through military, economic, and humanitarian assistance. Ukrainian Parliament members in attendance included David Arakhami… Continue Reading

Judiciary Committee Advances Nomination Of Steven Dettelbach To Lead ATF

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee today advanced the nominations of Sarah A.L. Merriam, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit; Lara E. Montecalvo, to be United States Circuit Judge for the First Circuit; Tiffany M. Cartwright, to be United States District Judge for the Western District of Washington; and Nina Nin-Yuen Wang, to be United States District Judge for the District of Colorado. Merriam received a vote of 12-10; Montecalvo received a vote of 12-10; Cartwrig… Continue Reading

Durbin Celebrates 10th Anniversary Of DACA, Calls On Congress To Finally Pass The Dream Act

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and lead author of the Dream Act, today celebrated the 10th anniversary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and called on Congress to finally pass the Dream Act to give Dreamers a pathway to citizenship. Twenty-one years ago, Durbin first introduced the Dream Act-bipartisan legislation that would give undocumented immigrants who grew up in this country… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Witnesses In Judiciary Committee Hearing On The Impact Of Gun Violence On Children

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned witnesses at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the impact of gun violence on children following the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that claimed the lives of 19 students and two teachers. This is the ninth hearing that the Judiciary Committee has held in the 117th Congress on aspects of the nation's gun violence epidemic. Durbin first questioned Phoenix… Continue Reading

Law Enforcement Leader: Gun Violence Is One Of The Most Significant Threats Facing Our Nation - And Our Children

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee released Phoenix Police Department Chief Jeri Williams' prepared testimony during today's hearing entitled "Protecting America's Children From Gun Violence." Williams is the President of the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA). MCCA has adopted a Firearms Violence Policy that calls for legislative reforms including universal background checks, closing domestic violence loopholes in the background check system, supporting "red flag" laws, banning b… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement At Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing On The Impact Of Gun Violence On Children

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled "Protecting America's Children From Gun Violence." This is the ninth hearing that the Judiciary Committee has held in the 117th Congress on aspects of the nation's gun violence epidemic. Key Quotes: "Today, the Committee will consider the terrible reality that guns have now become the leading cause of de… Continue Reading

President Of The American Academy Of Pediatrics Testifies On The Impact Of Gun Violence On Children

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee released Dr. Moira Szilagyi's prepared testimony during today's hearing entitled "Protecting America's Children From Gun Violence." Dr. Szilagyi, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), will additionally discuss how the AAP invited their member pediatricians to submit stories about gun violence and its impact on their patients. AAP has received hundreds of stories from pediatricians, which are available here. Key quotes as prepared: … Continue Reading

Judiciary Committee Releases Testimony Of Young Man From Chicago Who Grew Up In The Middle Of The Gun Violence Epidemic

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee released Ernest Willingham's prepared testimony during today's hearing entitled "Protecting America's Children From Gun Violence." Ernest Willingham is a 19-year-old college student at Northeastern University who grew up on the West Side of Chicago. The youngest of 11 children in his family and the first in his family to attend high school or college, Ernest has multiple family members who have been shot, and four years ago his best friend was fatall… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions DACA Recipient In Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing On Immigration

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned Dalia Larios, a resident at Harvard's Radiation Oncology Program and the first DACA recipient to be admitted to Harvard Medical School, at the "Strengthening our Workforce and Economy through Higher Education and Immigration" Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety hearing. The hearing comes one day before the tenth anniversary of Deferred Action for … Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth, Bustos Statement On Caterpillar Decision To Move Headquarters From Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Representative Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17) today released the following statement regarding Caterpillar's plans to move its headquarters from the Chicago area to Texas after nearly 100 years: "Caterpillar's surprise decision to move its headquarters from Illinois after nearly 100 years is extremely disappointing. While in terms of jobs impact for Illinois, this transition will only directly aff… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement At Immigration Subcommittee Hearing

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during the "Strengthening our Workforce and Economy through Higher Education and Immigration" Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety hearing. The hearing comes one day before the tenth anniversary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). During his opening statement, Durbin highlighted the need for Congress to pass legis… Continue Reading

On Senate Floor, Durbin urges Release Of Political Prisoners

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today highlighted the plight of political prisoners in four nations and called for their immediate release. All of these political prisoners have been outspoken in their support for democracy and basic freedoms. Durbin began his speech by highlighting Russian opposition leader Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was arrested in Moscow following an interview in which he called Vladimir Putin's government "a team of m… Continue Reading