Durbin Reflects On The Senate Judiciary Committee's Historic Achievements During The Biden Administration; Vows To Continue These Efforts During The Incoming Trump Administration

WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, highlighted the historic achievements of the Senate Judiciary Committee over the last four years. Thanks to the leadership of President Biden, Leader Schumer, and Chair Durbin, the Senate has confirmed 213 judges, and counting, to lifetime appointments on the federal bench during the Biden-Harris Administration. The Committee has also held hearings on the issues most important to the American people, including reproductive rights, fixing our broken immigration system, and gun violence prevention.

“For many of us, the outcome of last week’s election was not what we wanted, fought for, or voted for. But my priorities as Chair of the Judiciary Committee have not changed because of the election,” said Durbin.

During his remarks, Durbin highlighted the important progress the committee made in advancing President Biden’s nominees to the federal bench. During the Biden Administration, the Senate has confirmed 213 well-qualified judges to lifetime appointments on the federal bench—including one more confirmation tonight.  Aside from their exceptional qualifications and respect for the rule of law, these judges represent historic demographic and professional diversity. 

Durbin continued, “Under President Biden’s leadership, the Senate has confirmed more Black women to the federal circuit courts than all prior Presidents combined—including the first-ever Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court: Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.  We have confirmed a historic number of Asian American, Latino, and LGBTQ+ judges. We have also confirmed more circuit judges with experience as public defenders than all prior presidents combined. The American people deserve federal judges who look like America. Until the end of my tenure as Chair, I will continue to urge my colleagues to support the confirmation of these well-qualified and diverse judicial nominees.”

Following the Dobbs decision, Durbin made it a priority to focus on the consequences of that ruling through hearings where Senators and the American people heard directly from people impacted.   TheDobbs decision overruled a nearly 50-year-old precedent and for the first time stripped away a constitutional right from Americans—handing it over to politicians. Overruling Roe v. Wade has unleashed a health care crisis in America.

Durbin continued, “Following the [Dobbs] decision, nearly two dozen states have either banned or restricted access to abortion or are attempting to do so. Many of these bans provide no exceptions for rape and incest and many utterly fail to protect the health and lives of mothers. Some of these bans are even written in a way that seems to limit access to contraception. During my time as Chair of the Judiciary Committee, we have held multiple hearings on the impact of the Dobbs decision and the critical need to safeguard reproductive rights.” 

“I share the concerns of many Americans about what a second Trump Administration could mean for women’s reproductive rights and health care. The majority of the country supports a woman’s right to choose. And whatever further turmoil President-elect Trump may unleash on access to reproductive health care, we will not stop fighting for our nation’s women and families,”Durbin continued.

Durbin has been a champion for immigration reform for more than 20 years. As lead sponsor of the Dream Act, legislation that would allow noncitizens without lawful status who were brought to the United States as children and meet certain education or work requirements to earn lawful permanent residence, Durbin knows how important it is for Congress to enact meaningful immigration reform. 

During his speech, Durbin criticized President-elect Trump’s proposed policies on immigration in which he wants to deport children and families who have lived in the United States for years.

“This will devastate our economy. If the DACA program alone is struck down, experts predict our economy will lose an estimated $11.7 billion yearly in lost wages. Without continued immigration, the U.S. working-age population will shrink by more than six million by 2040. As Americans retire, this could lead to a 23 percent reduction in monthly Social Security [payouts] to retirees,” Durbin said. “If we genuinely want to boost our economy and resolve labor shortages, we need to provide a path to citizenship for those who have long contributed to our economy and society.”

Durbin continued, “I’ve worked for years to pass bipartisan legislation to fix our broken immigration system. Such legislation is needed to secure our border and protect American workers from outsourcing companies that exploit temporary worker programs. And we need immigration reform to protect the children of temporary workers who age out of legal status when they turn 21, as well as Dreamers, recipients of Temporary Protected Status, farmworkers, and other essential workers… Fighting for our nation’s immigrants in the right way will be one of my highest priorities.”

Gun violence continues to devastate our country—and is currently the leading cause of death for children and teens. In response to the mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Highland Park, Illinois, Durbin held hearings on the need to stop gun violence. Tomorrow, the Committee will hold a hearing on conversion devices used to increase the lethality of firearms, such as Glock switches, auto sears, bump stocks, and pistol braces. Some of these devices can be used to convert a semiautomatic firearm, which is designed to fire one shot per trigger pull, into a fully automatic firearm. This makes it easier for a gunman to commit mass murder—such as at the deadliest mass shooting in modern history, when a shooter killed 60 people and wounded hundreds more in Las Vegas in 2017.

“These modified machine guns are weapons of war, and we need to get them off the streets and away from innocent American families,” Durbin said.

Durbin concluded, “While my time as Chair of the Judiciary Committee will end in January, my belief in the promise of this country never will. I promise to work each day in the Senate to look out for the most vulnerable among us, to ensure liberty and equality for every person, and to uphold the rule of law, which is the bedrock of our democracy.”

Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

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