In the News
Durbin, Oberweis Butt Heads on ISIS, IRS and Immigration
09.21.14
Durbin slams DOD cap on Dreamer enlistees
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) blasted a Defense Department decision to limit the military enlistment of young immigrants known as Dreamers. "This is a missed opportunity by the Defense Department, which clearly has the legal authority to authorize the enlistment of Dreamers," Durbin said on Thursday. "This decision falls short of what our nation needs and these young men and women are prepared to give." The Department of Defense announced that it would allow Dreamers who qualify for Deferred Actio… Continue Reading
12.17.12
No more silence on gun limits
What will it take? What will it take for a majority of Americans to speak out for a sensible firearms policy in our nation? It will take more than a congresswoman being shot point-blank in the face as she gathers for a town meeting in Arizona. It will take more than a deranged gunman with a hundred-round magazine spraying bullets into a crowded movie theater in Colorado. It will take more than the kids who die playing with guns carelessly stored. It will take more than killings on the unive… Continue Reading
02.06.12
Old Chicago post office owners faulted bad air on trains
Efforts to tackle dangerous pollution that threatens the health of commuters at Amtrak's Union Station are being delayed by the foot-dragging British owner of the neighboring Old Post Office building, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin alleged Monday. But International Property Developers - the British firm that owns the giant, long-empty post office just South of Union Station - says it's already fixing the problem. A high level of air pollution caused by sooty diesel train exhausts was discovered in c… Continue Reading
02.03.12
Durbin says Arsenal jobs are safe for now
If you work on the Rock Island Arsenal, lawmakers said your job is safe for now. They're trying to protect it from budget cuts. Illinois Senator Dick Durbin said the US Department of Defense is still trying to figure out where to make cuts. But his plan is to make sure the Arsenal isn't one of them. Last year lawmakers found out the Arsenal's JMTC was on the chopping block. The center manufactures equipment for the military and businesses in the private sector. With the war in Iraq wrappin… Continue Reading
01.10.12
Durbin urges transparency by banks
EDWARDSVILLE - U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin wants banks to be more transparent when college students open checking accounts and is calling on assistance from colleges and universities to help. Durbin, D-Ill., spoke Tuesday to students, staff and administrators at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville about a plan for financial institutions to voluntarily adopt a disclosure form for fees. "There is something going on today is terms of financial institutions," Durbin said. "Consumers are asking… Continue Reading
11.05.11
Durbin warns of cuts on food safety
GRANITE CITY -- U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said potential funding cuts that would help the nation's budget would come at the expense of safe food. On Friday, the Senate majority leader told a group of culinary students at Southwestern Illinois College Sam Wolf Granite City Campus that a House-supported proposal would undermine his and other lawmakers' efforts earlier this year by halting or delaying reforms that were part of the Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act, which was… Continue Reading
11.04.11
Amtrak Cuts would hurt local, national interests
Sen. Dick Durbin chose the right place to talk about the impact of drastically cutting funding for Amtrak, when he spoke in Normal. Chicago is the only place in the state with an Amtrak station busier than Normal. Curtailing Amtrak service here would be a tremendous blow to the community, affecting not only those who ride the train but the economy as a whole. In 2010, 209,629 people got on or off the train in Normal, up from 192,687 the previous year. The station in Champaign-Urbana is … Continue Reading
10.30.11
Sen. Durbin tours Evanston south side to see stimulus package at work
U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl visited the city's south side Friday to tour parts of the Eighth Ward that have received funding from the federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2. The NSP2 was funded by the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which Congress passed in 2009 with the intention of stimulating the economy through job creation and temporary relief programs. The act included a $18.15 million appropriation for target areas i… Continue Reading
10.29.11
Durbin: federal stimulus program working in Evanston
Evanston's use of federal stimulus dollars to rehabilitate vacant and foreclosed properties is a prime example of the program's success, according to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. The senator made that assessment Friday morning while touring properties in south Evanston that were purchased and are being rehabilitated with a portion of the $18.15 million in federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 funds awarded to Evanston. "I wish I could bring some of my senate colleagues who go on th… Continue Reading
10.28.11
Durbin visits Oakton to talk about federal science grant
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin paid a visit to Oakton Community College in Des Plaines Friday afternoon to speak with school officials about Oakton's share of a National Science Foundation grant. Oakton is one of five community colleges across the country to partner in a $3.5 million grant project to establish a National Center for Excellence in Supply Chain Technology. It joins Norco College in Riverside, Calif., Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio, Tacoma Community College in Tacoma, Wash., a… Continue Reading
10.27.11
Durbin still hopeful on deficit package
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin said he has hopes that a bipartisan panel in Washington can come up with a comprehensive deficit reduction package, but said the so-called supercommittee was given "an almost impossible assignment" on a short time frame. Durbin, the state's senior senator and the second-ranking Democrat in the chamber, said that while the panel of House and Senate members was given until Nov. 23 to submit a deficit-cutting proposal, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said i… Continue Reading
10.25.11
Senator Durbin Talks Rail Funding in Normal
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin says proposed cuts to Amtrak service would be devastating to the state. The Bloomington-Normal Amtrak station is the second busiest in Illinois, and the fifth busiest in the nation. But a house transportation bill could change that. The bill proposes to cut Amtrak funding by 60%. Durbin says 240,000 people a year board trains at the station, including students at Illinois state university. He says cutting money from high speed rail means jobs will be lost … Continue Reading
10.25.11
Durbin talks student loans, health care
One of Illinois' leaders in Washington, D.C., spoke on campus Monday evening, discussing current issues and making concessions in today's divisive political climate. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, D-Ill., gave a keynote speech at a talk called Cooperation and Compromise in Congress, an event at the Levis Faculty Center sponsored by the Civic Leadership Program and the Niagara Foundation. Erica Mazzotti, graduate fellow with the civic leadership program and graduate student, took the initiative … Continue Reading
10.25.11
Durbin, B-N officials: Amtrak cuts a bad idea
NORMAL -- A U.S. House proposal to cut Amtrak funding by 60 percent would eliminate eight of the 10 daily trains to the Twin Cities, according to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. "This would be an end to Amtrak as we know it," Durbin said during a press conference in Normal Tuesday. "This is a step in the wrong direction." Durbin, the No. 2 member of the Senate, noted the work on Uptown Station -- backdrop for his speech -- was an investment made by Washington that is "putting people to work … Continue Reading
10.24.11
Sen. Durbin Promotes Jobs Bill At Decatur School
DECATUR, IL- Illinois' Senior Senator toured central Illinois Monday, pushing for congress to pass the American Jobs Act. Senator Dick Durbin says the jobs bill would invest $1.1 billion, part of which would go to modernizing public schools in Illinois. Durbin made a stop at Decatur's Johns Hill Magnet School Monday morning. The senator says the school lacks proper security measures and doesn't meet modern accessibility standards. Durbin also says the American Jobs Act would help create… Continue Reading
10.24.11
Sen. Durbin: Preserve Funding for Amtrak Service
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) says federal support for Amtrak service should be preserved. Speaking Monday afternoon at the Illinois Terminal Building in Champaign, Durbin said an appropriations bill introduced by House Republican would slash Amtrak funding by 60 percent, and eliminate 1,800 jobs in the state. Durbin urged lawmakers in Washington to maintain Amtrak funding, saying it is critical to the state's economy. "We are not going to cut everything at the federal government level," … Continue Reading
10.18.11
Durbin to baseball players: Stop using tobacco products
CARBONDALE - On the eve of the 2011 World Series, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is among a group of Democratic lawmakers asking major league baseball players to stop using tobacco products on the field. Durbin, D-Springfield, along with Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) today called on the Major League Baseball (MLB) Players Association to ban the use of all tobacco products, including smokeless tobacco, on the field, in the dugout, and in the locker rooms at M… Continue Reading
10.18.11
Sen. Durbin, colleagues want smokeless tobacco kicked out of baseball
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, a leading anti-tobacco campaigner on Capitol Hill, is using the occasion of the World Series to renew his request for baseball players to stop dipping and chewing in front of fans. Durbin and three other Democratic senators asked the Major League Baseball Players Association to prohibit use all tobacco products on the field, in the dugout and even in locker rooms at Major League Baseball parks. "Tomorrow night, an expected 15 million viewers, including many child… Continue Reading
10.12.11
Our Opinion: Make big banks pay price for their greed
Fresh off collecting a federal government bailout because they were too big to fail, the nation's biggest banks now are out to prove they are too big to regulate. Leading the charge is Bank of America, which responded to new limits on debit card swipe fees by announcing it will charge its debit card users $5 a month. Let's put this in perspective. Before Oct. 1, when the reforms in the Dodd- Frank Act went into effect, the average fee charged to a retailer on each debit card transac… Continue Reading