Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Immigration
Durbin Calls on Senate to Quickly Confirm Ali Mayorkas, Biden Nominee to Lead Department of Homeland Security
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), incoming Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today called on the Senate to quickly confirm President Joe Biden's nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Ali Mayorkas. Unfortunately, Republicans are holding up Mr. Mayorkas' confirmation. During his speech, Durbin noted that under President Trump, the agency experienced an unprecedented leadership vacuum. DHS lurched from o… Continue Reading
01.21.21
Durbin: Dreamers Have Waited Long Enough for the Dream Act
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Majority Whip and incoming Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, called on Congress to pass the Dream Act, describing it as one of his highest priorities in the 117th Congress. Durbin thanked President Biden for signing an executive order restoring the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and urged his colleagues to finally pass the long overdue, bipartisan Dream Act, which would give young immigra… Continue Reading
01.20.21
Durbin Statement on President Biden's Executive Orders on DACA, Muslim Travel Ban, and Border Wall
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), incoming Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after President Joe Biden issued executive orders to restore the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, reverse the Muslim travel ban, and stop diverting money from the Department of Defense for construction of the Southern border wall: "With these Executive Orders, President Biden is turning the page on four years of policies that dragged our c… Continue Reading
12.16.20
Durbin Discusses DACA and Immigration Reform with FWD.us
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today spoke with leaders at FWD.us, a bipartisan political organization focused on immigration and criminal justice reform. Durbin discussed his hopes for comprehensive immigration reform under the Biden-Harris Administration next year. Durbin expressed his gratitude towards millions of immigrants who are essential workers - many working in hospitals and other health care settings acros… Continue Reading
12.04.20
Durbin Speaks With American Business Immigration Coalition About Need For Comprehensive Immigration Reform
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today spoke at the American Business Immigration Coalition's Summit, entitled "Reigniting the Economic Engine: Immigration Solutions 2021," about the possibility of comprehensive immigration reform under a Democratic-controlled Senate. Durbin was a member of the "Gang of 8" - four Republicans and four Democrats - that authored comprehensive immigration legislation that p… Continue Reading
12.03.20
Durbin Speaks With Biden Nominee For DHS Secretary, Ali Mayorkas
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today spoke with President-elect Joe Biden's nominee to be Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary, Alejandro "Ali" Mayorkas. If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. Mayorkas would be the first Hispanic and the first immigrant to lead DHS. "Mr. Mayorkas is an exceptionally qualified nominee to run the Department of Homeland Security. During our call today, we discussed… Continue Reading
10.20.20
Durbin Presses Trump Administration On Dismal Refugee Resettlement Goal
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today on a call with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli pressed the Trump Administration on its dismal refugee resettlement goal of merely 15,000 refugees to the U.S. in the coming year, the lowest target in history. Prior to any presidential determination o… Continue Reading
10.09.20
Durbin To Cornyn: Following Bombshell Report, Senate Must Hold A Hearing On Trump Administration's Family Separation Policy
SPRINGFIELD-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today called on U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, to immediately hold hearings in the Subcommittee on the Trump Administration's disastrous zero-tolerance policy, which has forcibly separated thousands of infants, toddlers, and children from their parents at our southern border. Durbin, in a letter to Cornyn, calle… Continue Reading
10.07.20
Durbin Statement On DOJ IG Report On Trump Administration's Family Separation Policy
SPRINGFIELD-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today released the following statement after a New York Times article reported on a forthcoming Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report on family separation, which Durbin requested in July 2018: "Even these brief excerpts of the DOJ OIG report I requested tell a sickening story of the zero-tolerance policy that forcibly separated thousands… Continue Reading
10.01.20
Durbin, Feinstein Statement On Trump Admin Decision To Slash Refugee Resettlement Goal To Lowest Level In History
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, and U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the Trump Administration announced that it will aim to admit just 15,000 refugees to the U.S. in the coming year, the lowest target in history: "In the midst of the worst refugee crisis in history, it is no surprise that the Trump Admin… Continue Reading
09.30.20
Durbin Statement On DHS IG Report Detailing CBP's Inadequate Controls & Oversight Of FY19 Humanitarian Funding
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report that Durbin requested titled, "CBP Did Not Adequately Oversee FY 2019 Appropriated Humanitarian Funding." Today's report comes after Durbin led 24 of his Senate colleagues in a letter to DHS OIG last year requesting they inves… Continue Reading
09.16.20
Ninety Days Since Landmark Supreme Court DACA Decisions And Following Critical TPS Decision, Durbin Calls On Senate To Pass Dream And Promise Act
WASHINGTON - Ninety days since the Supreme Court's decision rejecting President Donald Trump's repeal of the Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee and author of the Dream Act, once again called on the Senate to pass the bipartisan, House-passed American Dream and Promise Act. The legislation will establish a path to citizenship for Dreamers and immigrants with Temporar… Continue Reading
09.16.20
Senate Republicans Continue To Block Bipartisan, House-Passed Venezuela TPS Legislation
WASHINGTON - Senate Republicans today again blocked bipartisan, House-passed legislation that would designate Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and protect approximately 200,000 Venezuelan nationals in the United States from deportation. U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) was joined by U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) on the Senate floor to make a unanimous consent (UC) request to im… Continue Reading
09.09.20
Durbin, Feinstein, Nadler, Lofgren Call On Trump Administration To Consult Congress About Refugee Resettlement, As Required By Law
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee; U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee; U.S. Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-10), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee; and U.S. Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA-19), Chairwoman of the House Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, pressed the Trump Administration to restore our nation's long-standing bipartisan traditio… Continue Reading
08.25.20
Durbin, Garcia, Kelly Call On Trump Admin To Immediately Facilitate Access To Legal Orientation Program To All ICE Detainees In Illinois
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, along with U.S. Representatives Jesús "Chuy" García (D-IL-04) and Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) today called on the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to work together to immediately facilitate access to the Legal Orientation Program (LOP), including meaningful remote access, to all ICE detainees in Illinois. LOP see… Continue Reading
08.24.20
Durbin, Whitehouse, Hirono Lead Call For GAO Investigation Of Trump Politicization And Mismanagement Of Immigration Courts As COVID-19 Crisis Rages
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, joined Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) to lead a request from all Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats to the top congressional watchdog to investigate the practices of the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) under President Trump, including its management of immigration courts during the current COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter to the Government Acc… Continue Reading
08.10.20
Durbin Speaks With Venezuelans About Need For Senate To Pass Bipartisan, House-Passed Venezuela TPS Legislation
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today spoke via conference call with Venezuelans in Illinois and around the country on his efforts to pass the bipartisan, House-passed Venezuela TPS Act of 2019 in the U.S. Senate. The legislation would designate Venezuela for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and protect approximately 200,000 Venezuelan nationals in the United States from deportation. They also discussed the increas… Continue Reading
08.05.20
Senator Rick Scott Blocks Durbin, Lee Compromise To Protect Immigrant Workers & Children In The Green Card Backlog
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, today attempted to pass legislation to protect immigrant workers and children who are stuck in the green card backlog. Durbin accepted a compromise proposal from Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), which would make several key reforms that were not in Lee's original Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, including: Early filing to protect immi… Continue Reading
07.31.20
Durbin, Hirono, Colleagues To McConnell: Immigrants Are Essential & Deserve Support In COVID-19 Relief Legislation
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined Senators Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Patty Murray (D-WA), and 24 of his Senate colleagues in a letter urging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to support tax-paying immigrant families who have Individual Tax Identification Numbers (ITIN) by ensuring they have access to economic relief payments provided in the CARES Act and any future coronavirus relief package. An estimated 20 million immigrants work in essential industries. Many o… Continue Reading
07.28.20
With President Trump In Open Defiance Of The Supreme Court, Durbin Attempts To Pass Dream & Promise Act On Senate Floor
WASHINGTON - In response to President Donald Trump's open defiance of the Supreme Court's decision rejecting his repeal of the Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee and author of the Dream Act, asked unanimous consent to pass the bipartisan, House-passed American Dream and Promise Act. The legislation will establish a path to citizenship for Dreamers and immigrants wit… Continue Reading