Durbin Speaks In Support Of Senate Booker Holding The Senate Floor & Calls Out The Trump Admin's Continued Efforts To Undermine The Rule Of Law
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) on the Senate floor to speak against efforts by the Trump Administration to undermine the rule of law. Booker has taken the Senate floor with the intention of disrupting the normal business of the Senate by speaking for as long as he is physically able. In his right as a Senator to speak without limitation, Booker is lifting up the voices of Americans who are being harmed and aren’t being heard by the Trump Administration and illustrating how this administration continues to disregard the rule of law, the Constitution, and the needs of the American people.
“I first want to acknowledge this extraordinary moment in the history of the Senate. I believe you [Senator Booker] have been holding the Floor now for more than ten hours and perhaps will go on even longer… I didn’t want to miss this moment in history, not just for the historic nature of it, but for the substance of it as well,” Durbin said to Booker.
Durbin began by recalling a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing where three Justice Department nominees failed to unequivocally commit to following federal court orders. The nominees were Harmeet Dhillon, to be Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division; Aaron Reitz, to be Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy; and D. John Sauer, to be Solicitor General of the United States. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) filed cloture on the nominations of Ms. Dhillon and Mr. Sauer last night. Last week, the Senate confirmed Mr. Reitz’s nomination on a party-line vote.
“The questioning went to the basics of our Constitution, which you have noted here today. And that is, what is the check and balance on a President? What is the accountability of a President under the Constitution?” Durbin said. “The question that was asked of the witnesses who were seeking positions in the Department of Justice, can a public official defy a court order? It seems so fundamental and basic. The answer is no, of course. But these three witnesses all equivocated in their own ways. Which raises the question, if this President is not held accountable by a court order, what then can control a President who misuses their office to the detriment of the nation or the people who live here? And that I thought was a fundamental question.”
Durbin continued, “He [President Trump] has issued [more than 100] executive orders… executive orders questioning something as basic as birthright citizenship. The point that I’m getting to is in obvious situations here where President Trump has gone too far, where is the accountability… It could be in the courts. And if it goes to the courts, the question is will this President follow a court order if it goes against his policy? And if he won’t follow that court order, where is the accountability? Where is the check and balance? Where is the constitutional framework which is supposed to be at the foundation of this democracy? I think you’re [Senator Booker] raising important questions.”
Durbin concluded, “I just commend you for raising this point because I believe it’s timely. It’s as timely as the questions that we asked of these Department of Justice nominees about the enforceability of court orders… I’m counting on some of our Republican friends to speak up.”
Last month, Durbin twice asked for unanimous consent (UC) to pass a resolution that simply affirms that the Constitution vests the judicial power in the federal courts and that both the Constitution and established precedent require the executive branch to comply with all federal court rulings. Senate Republicans objected to both of Durbin’s UC requests.
Video of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here.
Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the floor is available here for TV Stations.
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