Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), who rose up the ranks to become the second-ranked Democrat in the Senate during his more than four decades in Congress, announced on Wednesday that he will not seek re-election in 2026.
His move sets the stage for a potentially fierce primary fight among Democrats in a deep-blue state.
&#8220;The decision of whether to run for re-election has not been easy,&#8221; Durbin said in a video. &#8220;I truly love the job of being a United States Senator. But in my heart, I know it’s time to pass the torch. So, I am announcing today that I will not be seeking re-election at the end of my term.&#8221;
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I have given more than half of my life to House and Senate Congressional service, and I’ve always tried to stand up to power on behalf of the people of Illinois and our country.
I am proud of what I have achieved and hope my record will speak for itself. <a href="https://t.co/oiY49IQCUF">pic.twitter.com/oiY49IQCUF</a>
&mdash; Senator Dick Durbin (@SenatorDurbin) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorDurbin/status/1915076692030169535?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Illinois voters elected Durbin to the House in 1982 and the Senate in 1996. Durbin served as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and helped to confirm 235 judges, including Supreme Court Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. He became the second-ranking Democrat whip in 2005.
Durbin, 80, is the fourth Democrat in the upper chamber to rule out a re-election campaign in 2026. The others are Sens. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michigan-dem-senator-gary-peters-wont-run-for-re-election" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gary Peters</a> (D-MI), <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democratic-sen-jeanne-shaheen-wont-run-in-2026-opening-up-key-seat" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jeanne Shaheen</a> (D-NH), and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/another-dem-senator-announces-she-wont-run-for-re-election-in-2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tina Smith</a> (D-MN).
A number of Democrats are expected to announce campaigns for Durbin&#8217;s seat, including Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL), and Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL).
The GOP could also compete, but it will likely be a tough race for any Republican who decides to run. When Durbin secured his fifth term in 2020, he <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/11/03/us/elections/results-illinois-senate.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">defeated</a> Republican candidate Mark Curran by more than 15 percentage points.
Currently, Republicans have a 53-seat <a href="https://www.senate.gov/history/partydiv.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">majority</a> in the Senate. There are also 45 Democrats and two independents who caucus with them.
Durbin&#8217;s office said he is the longest-serving whip for either party. His impending retirement also paves the way to a future contest for the role, which is used to <a href="https://www.senate.gov/about/parties-leadership/party-whips.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rally</a> members and secure votes.
Durbin’s career has not been without controversy, as reported by The Daily Wire.
One story covered how Durbin <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dick-durbin-apologizes-to-tim-scott-after-calling-his-police-reform-bill-token" target="_blank" rel="noopener">apologized</a> to Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), the sole black Republican in the Senate, for referring to his police reform legislation as a &#8220;token&#8221; solution. Another focused on Durbin <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dick-durbin-attacks-gop-governors-over-transporting-migrants-to-democrat-cities-broken-every-basic-standard-of-decency" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accusing</a> Republican governors of violating “every basic standard of decency” by transporting migrants to sanctuary cities.
Mike Davis, who helped oversee the vetting of judicial appointments as a GOP Senate staffer and now runs the conservative Article III Project, was among those who responded to Durbin&#8217;s announcement.
&#8220;Dick Durbin is, by far, the smartest and most effective Democrat senator,&#8221; Davis <a href="https://x.com/mrddmia/status/1915073436784759273" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on X. &#8220;He is a political savage, who comes across as Midwest reasonable. Big loss for Senate Democrats, with unhinged partisan Sheldon Whitehouse taking over Senate Judiciary Democrats.&#8221;
Former President Barack Obama, who served as a U.S. senator from Illinois alongside Durbin before winning the White House, lauded his former colleague.
&#8220;As an Illinois voter, I couldn’t be prouder that our senator for the last 28 years has been one of the finest in the country. Dick Durbin has always fought the good fight on behalf of working families, and his integrity shines through in everything he does,&#8221; Obama <a href="https://x.com/BarackObama/status/1915080417876517007">said</a> on X.
&#8220;It’s also true that I would not have been a United States Senator – and certainly would not have been President – had it not been for Dick’s support,&#8221; Obama added. &#8220;He has been a great and loyal friend, and Michelle and I wish him and Loretta all the best in their next chapter.&#8221;

Senator Dick Durbin

No. 2 Senate Democrat Dick Durbin To Retire

Congress

Democrats

Dick Durbin

Election

Illinois

Politics

U.S. Senate

One of the things you&#8217;re generally not supposed to do when you&#8217;re in the commentary business is draw any sweeping conclusions about public sentiment based on reading YouTube comments. You can’t usually review YouTube comments and determine how people generally feel about something. But there&#8217;s been a trend across various YouTube comments sections lately that, at this point, I simply can&#8217;t ignore. 
If you pull up news reports about Republicans&#8217; efforts to ban men from competing in women&#8217;s sports, you will find — in every single instance, without exception — that the comments overwhelmingly support the Republicans. Even if you go to the channels of Left-wing news stations, the pattern remains the same. And not just on YouTube. Read the comments under any article on the topic. Read the comments on X or Facebook or Instagram. There is, everywhere, on every major platform, wide agreement on this issue. There just isn&#8217;t any debate among reasonable people about this issue. Everyone is tired of seeing men dominate women&#8217;s sports by pretending to be women.
Take for example this footage from NBC News&#8217; report last month. It&#8217;s about a bill that passed in the House, which would codify one of Donald Trump&#8217;s executive orders. The bill is called the &#8220;Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act.&#8221; And the terms of the legislation are pretty simple. It would ban any school that receives federal funding from, &#8220;permitting a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls.&#8221; And the bill goes on to define &#8220;sex&#8221; as &#8220;solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth,&#8221; just in case there was any doubt about that.
This is the kind of legislation we need to see more of. It&#8217;s a meaningful step by Republicans in Congress to give some backbone to an executive order that&#8217;s extremely important. With that in mind, here&#8217;s how NBC News covered the House vote on this legislation back in January:
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Right away, you can see that they&#8217;re framing this legislation as a bill that would &#8220;ban transgender girls and women from competing in women&#8217;s sports.&#8221; They&#8217;re not reporting the truth, which is that &#8220;transgender girls and women&#8221; are men. They&#8217;re not going into any detail about how obviously unfair it is for men to compete against women in sports. Instead, they&#8217;re trying to portray this law as some kind of mean-spirited, bigoted effort by Republican lawmakers.
And even on NBC News&#8217; YouTube channel — which has a very Left-leaning audience — this framing didn&#8217;t fly. Instead of condemning the ban, pretty much every single comment supports it. For example, the top comment reads, &#8220;can&#8217;t believe this is even being discussed; common sense is underrated.&#8221; Then someone says, &#8220;Finally the nonsense ends.&#8221; Another user replies, &#8220;As a woman and mother of a girl, I&#8217;m happy and grateful.&#8221;
I could go through about a dozen other videos like this. Forbes, for example, has a similar <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D01lcKNWSE0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">video</a>. One of the top comments puts it this way: &#8220;As a former democrat, even if im liberal on certain subjects, it&#8217;s dumb s*** like this that has driven me and a lot of other folks away from this party. &#8230; Embarrassing.&#8221;
And again, every comment is like this.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mws-ep-1548-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show</a></h3>
So the pattern is familiar: Left-wing media outlets try to portray the Republicans as the villain of the story. And despite that framing, the comments section revolts. None of this is surprising, when you take a look at the polling data on the topic. Just a couple of weeks ago, a New York Times poll <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/01/19/us-news/nyt-poll-finds-majority-of-democrats-oppose-transgender-athletes-in-womens-sports/">found</a> that, &#8220;the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don’t think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women’s sports.&#8221; Roughly 80% of respondents said that &#8220;men who identify as women&#8221; should be banned from women&#8217;s sports. And among Democrats, the number was 67%.
Just to put these numbers in context, something like <a href="https://www.prri.org/research/analyzing-the-2024-presidential-vote-prris-post-election-survey/">4%</a> of Democrats voted for Donald Trump in the last election. This is a demographic that disagrees with Trump on pretty much everything. But when it comes to the farce of men competing in women&#8217;s sports, even these Democrats are forced to agree with him.
That&#8217;s why the vote that just took place in the Senate is so remarkable. Every single Democrat in the Senate — all 45 of them — just voted against the &#8220;Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act.&#8221; In other words, 100% of the Democrat Party in the Senate still endorses the insanity of men competing against women. There was not one single defector. Despite the overwhelming number of voters — including Democrat voters — who are tired of this nonsense, Democrats in Washington are in complete lockstep on this issue. And they&#8217;re proud of it.
To give you some idea of how the day went, this is footage of Elizabeth Warren casting her vote. She makes sure everyone sees that she&#8217;s giving the big thumbs-down for the cameras:
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This was so confusing that I went looking through the floor debates on this bill. I wanted to know what, exactly, could motivate the &#8220;party of democracy&#8221; to flagrantly disregard the clear desires of its own voters. I wanted to see what arguments they put forward. And I came across this speech from Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois. Here&#8217;s how it began. This is Dick Durbin&#8217;s argument for why the Senate should not pass a bill that bans men from competing against women in sports:
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What&#8217;s especially funny about this line of argument is that Durbin supported Democrats&#8217; &#8220;anti-lynching&#8221; law a few years back, even though lynching — and all other forms of murder — have been illegal for some time in this country. Somehow the fact that no black people have been lynched in several decades didn&#8217;t deter Durbin from supporting that law. But now we&#8217;re supposed to conclude that, because there aren&#8217;t thousands of men playing in women&#8217;s sports, the whole issue is moot.
This is the stock argument you hear all the time from trans activists. Of course, even assuming Durbin&#8217;s numbers are accurate — which of course, we should not assume that — this is still an argument that completely sidesteps two very important issues. The first is that women are indeed losing opportunities and being degraded in order to affirm the delusions of pathological narcissists. That&#8217;s not something we should allow, regardless of how many women are being affected. The other issue of course is that a functioning society has to be able to accept the reality of basic human biology. Even if you don&#8217;t care about the injustices that athletes like Riley Gaines have endured — and you obviously should care about those injustices — then you still have to explain some basic terms. You have to explain, for example, what a &#8220;woman&#8221; is. You have to explain what a &#8220;man&#8221; is. And as we all know, Democrats are incapable of doing this.
During the rest of Durbin&#8217;s speech he eventually gets around to making another argument, one that is even more revealing than the last one. Watch:
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I went back and read the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/28/text">legislation</a> he&#8217;s talking about. And contrary to what Durbin says, there&#8217;s nothing in there that permits a random adult — or any adult — to look at the private parts of a student athlete who&#8217;s accused of pretending to be a woman. So what he is saying is that Republicans are secretly obsessed with this kind of perversion, when in fact he&#8217;s the only one thinking along these lines. This is maybe a window into the sordid mental state of Dick Durbin and Democrats like him.
In reality, the bill simply bans men from competing against women. That&#8217;s it. And everyone understands exactly how that would be enforced, because it&#8217;s extremely, painfully obvious when men are playing in women&#8217;s sports. You don&#8217;t need any kind of examination. You don&#8217;t need to test their chromosomes. You can just look at them. In every single case involving a man playing in women&#8217;s sports, that&#8217;s been true. And it has never been a close call.
Of course Democrats like Dick Durbin have to pretend otherwise. They&#8217;ll watch a basketball game, and see one athlete towering over everyone else — with a gigantic Adam&#8217;s apple, twice the muscle mass and a James Earl Jones voice — and conclude that there&#8217;s just no way of knowing the athlete&#8217;s gender. They have to act like it&#8217;s a mystery, known only to perverted gender inspectors who are going around pants-ing student athletes at every opportunity.
But even though Durbin&#8217;s side of this argument was in the minority, Democrats have succeeded in killing the legislation. That&#8217;s because laws like this one have to overcome a filibuster, which requires 60 votes. And because the vote on this legislation was 51 in favor and 45 opposed, it won&#8217;t pass. Republicans have the majority, but they&#8217;re not able to pass a law like this one. It&#8217;s enough to make you wonder why Republicans don&#8217;t eliminate the filibuster entirely at this point. We all know Democrats will do the same thing the moment they have the opportunity — they&#8217;ve done it before, after all. And if Democrats are now so unhinged and so unreasonable that they&#8217;re willing to defend the idea of men playing in women&#8217;s sports, then it&#8217;s safe to say the filibuster has drifted very far from its original purpose. The point of the filibuster was to enable careful deliberation. Instead, at the moment, it&#8217;s enabling insanity.
Getting rid of the filibuster would also make it much easier to pass a federal ban on child castration and mutilation in the name of so-called &#8220;gender-affirming care,&#8221; which is something I&#8217;ve obviously been pushing for, especially since the beginning of the second Trump administration. A couple of days ago, one of the most prominent Republicans in the Senate, Josh Hawley, endorsed my proposal. <a href="https://x.com/HawleyMO/status/1895487068438180307" target="_blank" rel="noopener">He wrote</a>: &#8220;And not just this — but when is Congress going to give VICTIMS of these transition surgeries &amp; treatments the right to SUE the people who carried them out? Needs to happen now.&#8221;
This is the kind of legislation that Republicans need to enact, as quickly as they possibly can. Whatever procedural roadblocks are in the way, they need to be cleared. When Democrats are using the filibuster to obstruct the will of the vast majority of Americans — including their own voters — then it&#8217;s a pretty clear sign that the filibuster needs to go. It has outlived whatever usefulness it had. And once the filibuster is gone, we need to start passing laws that affirm the reality of basic, fundamental human biology. For the benefit of all young people — and to restore some semblance of sanity in this country — we now have no other choice.

Senators Speak To The Press After Their Weekly Policy Luncheons On Capitol Hill

Democrats Ignore The Will Of The People With This Insane Move

Donald Trump

Filibuster

Gender

Matt Walsh

Opinion

Transgender

U.S. House of Representatives

Women's sports

A critical vote on the nomination of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/kash-patel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kash Patel</a> to become President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a>&#8216;s director of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FBI</a> has been delayed at the behest of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> Democrats.
The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee was set to vote on advancing the nomination on Thursday, but that is now expected to happen in one week.
During a <a href="https://www.c-span.org/program/senate-committee/senate-judiciary-committee-delays-vote-on-fbi-director-nominee-kash-patel/655426" target="_blank" rel="noopener">meeting</a> of the panel, Chairman <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/chuck-grassley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chuck Grassley</a> (R-IA) said the nomination was &#8220;held over,&#8221; recognizing a request by the Democrats as prescribed under committee rules.
As <a href="https://x.com/ChadPergram/status/1887530389402443876" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> by Fox News&#8217; Chad Pergram, Grassley also said the committee would send Patel&#8217;s nomination to the Senate floor &#8220;168 hours from now,&#8221; which is in seven days.
&#8220;Unbelievable. Democrat Senators are running scared,&#8221; Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) said in a post to X.
&#8220;They&#8217;re terrified that [Patel] is going to reform the 7th floor of the Hoover Building, arrest bad guys, and end 4 years of liberal weaponized government. Delay tactics are just that,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Kash WILL BE CONFIRMED.&#8221;
Democrats argue Patel is a problematic choice to lead the FBI and say they want more time to evaluate the nominee&#8217;s <a href="https://x.com/JudiciaryDems/status/1887148388757422179" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&#8220;misleading&#8221;</a> testimony.
&#8220;Kash Patel, Donald Trump’s FBI Director pick, is an unqualified, unserious nominee who will make us less safe,&#8221; Senate Judiciary Democrats <a href="https://x.com/JudiciaryDems/status/1887526239818424639" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> on X.  &#8220;He’s a vengeful extremist — to the point that he seemingly lied under oath.&#8221;
The Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee previously secured a one-week delay on consideration of Pam Bondi to become U.S. Attorney General. After waiting seven days, the committee voted along party lines to advance Bondi&#8217;s nomination to the full Senate. The Senate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/senate-confirms-pam-bondi-for-attorney-general" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted</a> 54-46 to confirm Bondi to the Cabinet role on Tuesday with Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) breaking ranks.
Grassley also criticized Democrats for &#8220;forcing&#8221; the committee to meet just to hold over a nominee, noting how Republicans did not pull such a move when they were in the minority in the last Congress.
&#8220;Our committee works best when both sides uphold norms regardless of which party holds the majority at any one time,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I&#8217;m disappointed that my colleagues aren&#8217;t reciprocating a courtesy we extended in good faith when we were in the minority.&#8221;
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), the ranking member, acknowledged that what Grassley said was &#8220;true&#8221; and used the platform to disparage Patel.

Kash Patel

Dem ‘Delay Tactics’ Push Back Vote On Kash Patel For FBI Director

Chuck Grassley

kash patel

Presidential nomination

Senator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-kennedy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Kennedy</a> (R-LA) took a brief moment during Thursday&#8217;s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to throw a little shade at his colleague, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), over the latter&#8217;s claims that Kash Patel was a &#8220;conspiracy theorist.&#8221;
Kennedy addressed the comments to Patel, who was testifying before the committee as part of the Senate&#8217;s &#8220;advise and consent&#8221; process since being named by President Donald Trump to take over leadership of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
WATCH:
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🚨KASH PATEL A CONSPIRACY THEORIST?
Here&#39;s the epic moment when <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnKennedyLA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JohnKennedyLA</a> mocked Sen. Durbin for calling <a href="https://twitter.com/Kash_Patel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Kash_Patel</a> a conspiracy theorist.
&quot;Sounds to me like we need to get some new conspiracy theories because all the old ones turned out to be true,&quot; <a href="https://twitter.com/SenJohnKennedy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenJohnKennedy</a> said.… <a href="https://t.co/N1goiWHa91">pic.twitter.com/N1goiWHa91</a>
&mdash; Tyler O&#39;Neil (@Tyler2ONeil) <a href="https://twitter.com/Tyler2ONeil/status/1885023700849709102?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;My colleague and friend Senator Durbin called you a &#8216;conspiracy theorist,'&#8221; Kennedy said to Patel. &#8220;You remember that?&#8221;
&#8220;I do, Senator,&#8221; Patel replied.
&#8220;You were instrumental in revealing the Trump-Russia election-collusion hoax was a hoax, weren&#8217;t you?&#8221; Kennedy asked.
Patel said that he was, and confirmed that he had been the lead investigator on that particular case. For a moment, Kennedy remained silent, hands folded, and simply nodded his head.
&#8220;Sounds to me like we need to get some new conspiracy theories because all the old ones turned out to be true,&#8221; he observed.
Patel laughed, and added, &#8220;Facts matter, senator.&#8221;
&#8220;I mean, conspiracy theorists are up something like 37 to nothing,&#8221; Kennedy said, prompting more laughter, before pivoting to a more serious line of questions: &#8220;You&#8217;re not saying everybody at the FBI is bad, are you?&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;ve never said that,&#8221; Patel replied. &#8220;I&#8217;ve overwhelmingly said, multiple times, that 98% of the FBI is courageous, apolitical warriors for justice. They just need better leadership.&#8221;
Patel&#8217;s hearing included a series of contentious exchanges with Democrats like Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who used her allotted time to make several attempts — all of which failed — to walk Patel into a rhetorical trap.
Also on Capitol Hill for hearings on Thursday were Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and former Rep. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tulsi-gabbard-spits-fire-in-opening-statement-i-refuse-to-be-their-puppet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tulsi Gabbard</a>, who was nominated to be Director of National Intelligence.

Twitter Whistleblower Peiter Zatko Testifies Before Senate Judiciary Committee

John Kennedy Mocks Dick Durbin For Calling Kash Patel A ‘Conspiracy Theorist’

John Kennedy Mocks Dick Durbin For Calling Kash Patel A 'Conspiracy Theorist'

John Kennedy

On Wednesday, the GOP-led <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> amended the &#8220;Laken Riley Act,&#8221; a bill that would require federal officials to arrest illegal immigrants charged with crimes in the United States.
Seventy members, including Republicans and Democrats, <a href="https://www.congress.gov/amendment/119th-congress/senate-amendment/14/text" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voted</a> in favor of expanding the legislation&#8217;s list of criminal offenses that would lead to mandatory detention of &#8220;inadmissible aliens.&#8221;
Another 25 senators voted against the amendment from Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), all Democrats and the two independents who caucus with them. Several other members did not vote.
The bill, which got <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-again-passes-laken-riley-act-159-dems-vote-against-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> by the House last week, would direct the secretary of Homeland Security to detain illegal immigrants charged with, convicted of, or who admits to theft-related crimes.
With the amendment included, the list now <a href="https://www.congress.gov/amendment/119th-congress/senate-amendment/14/text" target="_blank" rel="noopener">also mentions</a> &#8220;the assault of a law enforcement officer offense, or any crime that results in death or serious bodily injury to another person.&#8221;
The Senate also <a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00004.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rejected</a> an amendment from Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) to &#8220;strike&#8221; a section authorizing state attorneys general to sue federal immigration officials for alleged detention violations.
Laken Riley was a 22-year-old Georgia nursing student who was killed last year. An illegal immigrant from Venezuela, Jose Ibarra, was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-jose-ibarra-found-guilty-of-killing-georgia-nursing-student-laken-riley" target="_blank" rel="noopener">convicted</a> of murdering Riley and <a href="https://apnews.com/article/georgia-nursing-student-laken-riley-immigrant-d8d75ccc6d81e7a88eb7890829d9fc9c#:~:text=The%20killing%20added%20fuel%20to,entered%20the%20U.S.%20in%202022.&amp;text=The%20Venezuelan%20man%20convicted%20in,without%20the%20possibility%20of%20parole." target="_blank" rel="noopener">sentenced</a> to life in prison.
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A press release from Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), who <a href="https://collins.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-mike-collins-reintroduces-laken-riley-act" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reintroduced</a> the Laken Riley Act for the new Congress, said the bill &#8220;directly addresses one of the federal policy failures&#8221; related to the murder.
Ibarra was &#8220;previously cited for shoplifting by the Athens Police Department,&#8221; it said. &#8220;If local law enforcement had called ICE, and ICE issued a detainer and picked him up, Laken would be alive.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5/amendments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dozens</a> more amendments have been proposed, including <a href="https://x.com/SenatorDurbin/status/1879315360975097974" target="_blank" rel="noopener">two</a> from Judiciary ranking member Dick Durbin (D-IL) that would exempt Dreamers and give them and others a path to citizenship.
But C-SPAN&#8217;s Craig Caplan <a href="https://x.com/CraigCaplan/status/1879683513869312006" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has filed cloture on the bill, setting up a vote to advance it and limit amendments, with a 60-vote threshold.
Whatever new version of the Laken Riley Act may ultimately pass through the Senate would need another vote by the House before it could be sent to the president to possibly sign the bill into law.

US Senator John Cornyn (R-TX)

Senate Amends Laken Riley Act To Add More Crimes Requiring Detention Of Illegal Immigrants

Chris Coons

Illegal Immigration

Immigration

John Cornyn

John Thune

Laken Riley

Top FBI and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/secret-service" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Secret Service</a> officials will face questions from senators on Tuesday about the attempted assassination of former President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donald Trump</a> during a combined hearing in front of the Senate’s Judiciary and Homeland Security committees. 
Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe and FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate will speak to lawmakers about the security failures that led to Trump nearly being assassinated during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, earlier this month. The two are expected to be questioned about how 20-year-old Thomas Mathew Crooks was able to access a rooftop within 150 yards of Trump and fire several shots at the former president. 
Abbate is also <a href="https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/press/releases/durbin-previews-hearing-examining-security-failures-that-led-to-trump-assassination-attempt-in-speech-on-the-senate-floor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expected</a> to give lawmakers an update on the FBI investigation into the attack, which injured Trump, two rally attendees, and killed 50-year-old Corey Comperatore. 
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), who heads up the Senate Judiciary Committee, said on Monday that the hearing would focus on the security lapses surrounding the incident. 
“Despite the implementation of a security plan to secure the rally site on July 13, the shooter involved was able to fly a drone outside of the security perimeter for 11 minutes,” Durbin said. “His suspicious activity was reported twice, and he was spotted on the roof of a building prior to taking his first shot — yet his violent plan continued unimpeded, and he was able to fire eight shots before a Secret Service countersniper killed him.”
Text messages obtained by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and shared with the New York Times <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/snipers-were-suspicious-of-trump-rally-gunman-90-minutes-before-he-opened-fire" target="_blank" rel="noopener">show</a> that Crooks was flagged by law enforcement as suspicious more than 90 minutes before he started shooting.
Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS), who is on the Homeland Security committee, told The Daily Wire that security lapses occurred because Secret Service agents didn’t work closely with local law enforcement. 
“Time and time again, we see three letter agencies and their bureaucratic processes and political biases fail our communities,” he told The Daily Wire. “This is a top-down systemic failure and culture that’s plaguing these agencies and must be addressed.” 
“The U.S. Secret Service team blew off Butler County local law enforcement, the officers who know this community the best- why is that?” he asked. “Would things be different today if communication and respect between local and D.C. officials was stronger?”
Lawmakers in both the House and Senate have launched investigations into the attack. On Monday, the House <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/house-reveals-members-of-task-force-to-investigate-trump-assassination-attempt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">named</a> a task force to spearhead an inquiry. Former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned last week after she was grilled by House lawmakers over the security failures surrounding the rally.

TOPSHOT-US-POLITICS-VOTE

Senate To Question Secret Service, FBI About Attempted Trump Assassination

assassination

Secret Service

Thomas Matthew Crooks

Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ted-cruz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ted Cruz</a> (R-TX) ripped Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL) for refusing to subpoena convicted child sex predator Jeffrey Epstein&#8217;s flight logs.
Cruz made the remarks during an episode of his &#8220;Verdict&#8221; podcast this week with co-host Ben Ferguson, which comes after Durbin <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-chairman-dick-durbin-claims-no-one-wants-to-subpoena-jeffrey-epsteins-flight-logs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">falsely claimed</a> that no one wanted to subpoena Epstein&#8217;s flight logs.
The senator said that “the subpoenas going after Harlan Crowe and going after Leonard Leo are part of their ongoing effort to harass the Supreme Court, to de-legitimize the Supreme Court, and in particular to target Clarence Thomas.&#8221;
&#8220;They despise Clarence Thomas,&#8221; Cruz said. &#8220;So, in response to that, a number of Republicans had different amendments that we were pushing that if they were going to force a vote on the subpoenas, we were going to force a vote on our amendments.”
Cruz noted that Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) proposed subpoenaing &#8220;Epstein&#8217;s estate for the flight logs to his plane and in particular, the Lolita express &#8230; the private jet that flew down to Jeffrey Epstein&#8217;s island with lots and lots of politicians allegedly, mostly Democrats. We don&#8217;t know who was on it.”
&#8220;This is easy to resolve. We should subpoena Epstein&#8217;s flight records,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;If there are politicians, Democrat or Republican or anybody else who was on that plane, who was going to that island, who was molesting and sexually assaulting children, we should know who they are.&#8221;
&#8220;The fact that the Democrats are apparently in a full-on panic, I don&#8217;t know if Durbin knows somebody on that list or I don&#8217;t know if they&#8217;re just afraid,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;I don&#8217;t know what their fear is. But they&#8217;re plainly terrified of voting on it. And if I&#8217;m wrong, Durbin can solve it very easily by bringing it up for a vote and issuing the subpoena.&#8221;
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨Wow:
“The only way <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorDurbin?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenatorDurbin</a> could get his votes for the Harlan Crow and Leonard Leo subpoenas was to stop a vote on the Jeffrey Epstein subpoena.” &#8211; Senator <a href="https://twitter.com/tedcruz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TedCruz</a> <a href="https://t.co/JwmdDoHoxb">pic.twitter.com/JwmdDoHoxb</a>
&mdash; Carrie Severino (@JCNSeverino) <a href="https://twitter.com/JCNSeverino/status/1734617445044764934?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 12, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-chairman-dick-durbin-claims-no-one-wants-to-subpoena-jeffrey-epsteins-flight-logs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Democrat Chairman Dick Durbin Claims No One Wants To Subpoena Jeffrey Epstein’s Flight Logs</a>

Tech CEO’s Attend Sen. Schumer’s Senate AI Forum

Cruz Rips Durbin For Protecting Those Who Flew On Jeffrey Epstein’s Plane By Not Subpoenaing Flight Logs

Cruz Rips Durbin For Protecting Those Who Flew On Jeffrey Epstein's Plane By Not Subpoenaing Flight Logs

Jeffrey Epstein

Ted Cruz

A top <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> Democrat said on Monday that he believes <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/illegal-immigration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">illegal immigrants</a> should have a path to U.S. citizenship by joining the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/military" target="_blank" rel="noopener">military</a>.
Senate Majority Whip <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/dick-durbin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dick Durbin</a> (D-IL), who is also chairman of the Judiciary Committee, floated the idea during <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?532182-1/senate-session" target="_blank" rel="noopener">remarks on the Senate floor</a> after he commented on GOP resistance to approving <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/speaker-johnson-blasts-biden-admin-in-dust-up-over-ukraine-aid" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more aid to Ukraine</a> without comprehensive border security reforms.
&#8220;What troubles me about the debate now about the southern border is that it is one-half of the immigration equation,&#8221; Durbin said. &#8220;Yes, we need order at the border. Yes, we need to have changes in the laws that reflect the reality of the overwhelming numbers from all over the world who are coming to our shores and our border.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Senator Dick Durbin wants to make it possible for illegal immigrants to join the US military: &quot;Do you know what the recruiting numbers are at the Army, the Navy, and the Air Force? They can&#39;t reach their quotas each month. They can&#39;t find enough people to join.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/UWuGSfrSkF">pic.twitter.com/UWuGSfrSkF</a>
&mdash; TheBlaze (@theblaze) <a href="https://twitter.com/theblaze/status/1731798935134429370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;But there&#8217;s also an incredible demand for legal immigration into this country, even now,&#8221; Durbin continued. He then referenced <a href="https://www.duckworth.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Immigrant%20Veterans%20-%20Deported%20by%20the%20Same%20Nation%20They%20Sacrificed%20to%20Defend.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">legislation</a> <a href="https://www.stripes.com/veterans/2023-11-10/veterans-legislation-duckworth-immigrants-benefits-12006449.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">offered</a> by his fellow lawmaker from Illinois, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), to ensure immigrant service members get assistance to obtain U.S. citizenship and veterans&#8217; benefits.
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&#8220;Her bill — and I hope I describe it accurately — says that if you are an undocumented person in this country and you can pass the physical and the required test, background test, the like, that you can serve in our military, and if you do it honorably, we will make you citizens of the United States,&#8221; Durbin said.
&#8220;Do we need that? Do you know what the recruiting numbers are at the Army and the Navy and the Air Force? They can&#8217;t reach their quotas each month. They can&#8217;t find enough people to join our military forces. And there are those who are undocumented who want the chance to serve and risk their lives for that country. Should we give them a chance? I think we should,&#8221; Durbin added.
Durbin&#8217;s recruitment pitch, which suggests an <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/patriotism-unity/military-recruitment-crisis-appealing-to-legal-immigrants" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expansion</a> of the U.S. military&#8217;s ability to enlist <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/06/11/us-military-offers-legal-migrants-path-to-citizenship-amid-recruiting-shortfall/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">foreigners beyond legal migrants</a> for a chance at citizenship, was met with pushback from Republicans on social media.
&#8220;So, the Democrats want to flood the country with illegal aliens, enlist them in the military, and make them citizens. They broke the laws invading this country, and they expect them to take an oath to support and defend our nation? Are they out of their minds?&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/TXRandy14/status/1732082386244948286" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX).
&#8220;Manning our military with people whose first act in our nation was to violate its sovereignty can never be trusted with our defense,&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/joekent16jan19/status/1732032721386676262" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Joe Kent, a Republican and former Green Beret running for a House seat in Washington state.
&#8220;Secure our borders, deport the illegals, restore pride in our military by restoring the meritocracy &amp; ending foolish interventions,&#8221; Kent added. &#8220;I served w/ many great Americans who earned their citizenship by serving in our military, all of them legally entered our nation. We cannot tolerate or normalize the use of illegals in any workforce, especially our military.&#8221;

Top Senate Dem Favors Citizenship For Illegal Immigrants Through Military Service

Military

A subpoena request filed in Congress to grant lawmakers access to the flight logs connected to deceased financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was allegedly blocked last week by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL).
Durbin, who leads the Senate Judiciary Committee, reportedly rejected the request brought forward by Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn in early November. She accused Durbin of standing in the way of certifying the request after a contentious committee meeting on Thursday.
“What are Democrats trying to hide?” Blackburn said in a post on X.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorDurbin?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SenatorDurbin</a> BLOCKED my request to subpoena Jeffrey Epstein’s flight logs.
What are Democrats trying to hide?
&mdash; Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarshaBlackburn/status/1730275853748126138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 30, 2023</a></blockquote>
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During a committee hearing last month surrounding Durbin’s attempts to investigate Supreme Court ethics issues, Blackburn filed the request in the upper chamber of Congress. Amid a fiery exchange between the two lawmakers, Blackburn announced a series of subpoena requests — including one against against Epstein’s estate to identify everyone listed on the flight records that have been said to include several high-profile figures worldwide.
An aide for the Democratic Senate Judiciary Committee <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/jeffrey-epstein-flight-logs-denied-democrat-led-senate-judiciary-committee-blackburn-says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Fox News Digital in a statement that Durbin would have stayed in the panel on Thursday to allow Republicans to offer and debate the 177 filed amendments, noting the committee would vote on authorizing the subpoena after. But Republican lawmakers on the committee allegedly began to filibuster during the hearing and didn’t allow Blackburn to offer the first amendment to the authorization, the Democratic committee aide claimed.
Blackburn <a href="https://www.blackburn.senate.gov/2023/11/breaking-judiciary-chair-durbin-blocks-senator-blackburn-s-request-to-subpoena-sotomayor-staff-epstein-flight-logs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> the hearing a &#8220;sad day in the history of the prestigious Judiciary Committee and further underscores the Left’s two tiers of justice crusade.&#8221;
“They also don’t want to have a conversation about the estate of Jeffrey Epstein to find out the names of every person who participated in Jeffrey Epstein’s human trafficking ring,” she added.
Epstein died in his New York prison cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking charges that involved running a “vast network” of underage girls for sex. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges before his death at 66 years old.
Insider previously reported that Epstein had owned at least three jets, including a Gulfstream II sold in November 2013, a Gulfstream IV sold before his arrest, and a Boeing 727 nicknamed the “Lolita Express,” which allegedly transported prominent individuals and girls all around the world.
The so-called Lolita Express private jet has been the subject of controversy amid the accusations brought against Epstein and, in particular, the flight records connected to the plane that supposedly include the names of those who traveled with him.
Victims of Epstein and at least one of his pilots have since come out and claimed that public figures, including Bill Gates, Prince Andrew, and Donald Trump, had traveled with the disgraced financier.
In December 2021, prosecutors reportedly released thousands of flight records in the sex-trafficking trial of his alleged accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, who also pleaded not guilty but was ultimately convicted.
Insider reported flight manifests unsealed in a defamation case against Maxwell showed that some names listed included former President Bill Clinton, supermodel Naomi Campbell, and the astronaut John Glenn.

GOP Senate Judiciary Members Hold Press Conference On The Supreme Court

Sen. Blackburn Says Democrat-Led Senate Committee Chair Blocked Epstein Flight Logs Subpoena

Ghislaine Maxwell

Marsha Blackburn

Top congressional Democrats are reportedly circulating a letter to President Joe Biden encouraging him to &#8220;designate the Palestinian territories for Temporary Protected Status,&#8221; thus allowing &#8220;foreign nationals&#8221; from those areas to stay in the U.S.
The draft letter, obtained by The Daily Caller, is reportedly backed by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL).
Reporter Henry Rodgers said that the push from congressional Democrats was a call to &#8220;open the flood gates for Palestinians to come into the U.S.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
NEW: A Senate source tells me Sen. Durbin, Congresswoman Jayapal and Congresswoman Schakowsky are circulating this letter calling to open the flood gates for Palestinians to come into the U.S.: <a href="https://twitter.com/DailyCaller?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DailyCaller</a> <a href="https://t.co/GjV6T5fDXa">pic.twitter.com/GjV6T5fDXa</a>
&mdash; Henry Rodgers (@henryrodgersdc) <a href="https://twitter.com/henryrodgersdc/status/1722005886036570143?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The letter comes after the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas launched an unprecedented attack against Israel last month, murdering 1,400 Israelis, wounding 5,300+, and kidnapping more than 240.
&#8220;We urge your Administration to designate the Palestinian territories for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and/or authorize Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Palestinians present in the United States,&#8221; the lawmakers wrote. &#8220;As you know, TPS and DED offer temporary relief from removal and work authorization for eligible foreign nationals who are unable to return safely to their home countries or part of a country. In light of ongoing armed conflict, Palestinians already in the United States should not be forced to return to the Palestinian territories, consistent with President Biden&#8217;s stated commitment to protecting Palestinian civilians.&#8221;
The letter demonized Israel by citing numbers from anti-Semitic organizations on how many Palestinians have been displaced from their homes.
The letter did not ask for the same protections for Israeli nationals and made no mention of the hundreds of thousands of Israelis that have been displaced from their homes as a result of terrorist attacks on Israel&#8217;s northern and southern borders.
&#8220;U.S. Department of State statistics indicate that 7,241 nonimmigrant visas were issued to individuals holding Palestinian Authority (PA) travel documents in 2022, the most recent year for which such data is available,&#8221; the letter said. &#8220;While the number of non-immigrant visas issued cannot provide an exact approximation of the number of Palestinians that would be eligible for TPS or DED, it makes clear that the number of beneficiaries would be small, while the benefit could be lifesaving. TPS or DED would enable Palestinians currently present in the U.S., including students, tourists, and workers, to be protected from a dangerous return to their homeland while affording them the ability to remain safely in the U.S. and to work legally to support themselves and their families.&#8221;
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&#8220;As such, we urge your Administration to designate the Palestinian territories for TPS and/or to authorize DED for Palestinians in the United States without delay,&#8221; the lawmakers concluded. &#8220;Thank you for your consideration of this request.&#8221;

US Supreme Court Hears Arguments In Student Debt Cancellation Program

Democrats Circulate Letter Urging Biden To Let Palestinians Stay In The U.S.: Report

Gaza

Israel

Pramila Jayapal

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), who is chairman of the Judiciary Committee, defended Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) on Sunday after Menendez was hit with federal corruption charges last week, saying that the charges against former President Donald Trump were just as serious and prosecutors needed to &#8220;prove&#8221; their case.
Durbin made the remarks during a Sunday interview with CNN&#8217;s Dana Bash on &#8220;State of the Union&#8221; when asked about the multiple felonies facing Menendez.
&#8220;He is due in federal court on Wednesday on bribery and corruption charges, including allegations that he received gold bars, a luxury car, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes and he gave sensitive government information to Egypt,&#8221; Bash said. &#8220;He is denying these charges, I should say. But many Democratic members and officials in New Jersey are saying that he should resign. Do you?&#8221;
Durbin said that the charges against Menendez were &#8220;very serious&#8221; but that the indictments against Trump were also &#8220;equally serious charges.&#8221;
&#8220;These are, in fact, indictments that have to be proven under the rule of law,&#8221; Durbin said. &#8220;The person who is accused is entitled to the presumption of innocence. And it&#8217;s the responsibility of the government to prove that case.&#8221;
Durbin did note that Menendez had to step down from his spot as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee but added that &#8220;in terms of resignation, that&#8217;s a decision to be made by Senator Menendez and the people of New Jersey.&#8221;
Bash pushed back, noting that a lot of Democrats have said that Menendez should resign.
&#8220;Well, keep in mind that these are charges, and they have to be proven. And there is a presumption of innocence,&#8221; he said. &#8220;How far it goes, in terms of his future service, is something to be decided by the senator and the people of New Jersey.&#8221;
Bash later noted that Menendez was going to be up for reelection and asked Durbin if he should run again.
&#8220;Well, I can tell you that it&#8217;s a significant event,&#8221; Durbin said. &#8220;Clearly, it is. And whether or not he will run for reelection remains to be seen.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) defends Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) from corruption charges, says charges against Trump are “equally serious” and prosecutors needed to “prove” their case even though they’ve already laid out significant evidence against the Senator. <a href="https://t.co/71IWzKx11x">pic.twitter.com/71IWzKx11x</a>
&mdash; Jason Rantz on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) <a href="https://twitter.com/jasonrantz/status/1706045742215729250?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Richard Durbin Sept 12

Top Ranking Democrat Defends Menendez Over Corruption Charges: Trump’s Charges ‘Equally Serious’

Bob Menendez

Media

A top Democrat in the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate">Senate</a> broke with Majority Leader <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/chuck-schumer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chuck Schumer</a> (D-NY) on the controversial decision to relax the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-fetterman-rule-senate-cuts-dress-code-enforcement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">chamber&#8217;s dress code</a>.
Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/dick-durbin">Dick Durbin</a> (D-IL), who is the Senate majority whip, said he is &#8220;concerned&#8221; about the change that was implemented this week, <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4216039-durbin-no-2-senate-democrat-concerned-about-dress-code-change/">according to The Hill</a>.
&#8220;I can’t understand exactly what he was thinking at that point,&#8221; Durbin said of Schumer. &#8220;I want to give him the benefit of the doubt until I speak to him but I think the Senate needs to act on this.&#8221;
Durbin reportedly made the comments during an interview with “The Briefing with Steve Scully” on SiriusXM’s POTUS channel, which is set to air on Friday.
Relaxing enforcement of the dress code, which appears to be more of a tradition than <a href="https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/general/one_item_and_teasers/file_not_found.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">written policy</a>, has sparked <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-senators-are-reacting-to-fetterman-rule-dress-code" target="_blank" rel="noopener">jokes as well as blowback</a> from members of the Senate on both sides of the aisle. The Washington Post editorial board <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-washington-post-pans-new-fetterman-rule-for-senate-dress">also panned</a> the change, which affects senators but not staff members.
In a <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/09/17/senate-drops-dress-code-schumer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement to Axios</a>, the first news outlet to report the change over the weekend, Schumer said senators &#8220;are able to choose what they wear on the Senate floor.&#8221; The majority leader also said he will continue to wear a suit.
Much of the uproar has been directed at Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-fetterman" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Fetterman</a> (D-PA), a freshman member who is well known for often wearing hoodies and gym shorts, leading to the change being dubbed <a href="https://twitter.com/WashTimes/status/1703936751012659445">&#8220;The Fetterman Rule.&#8221;</a>
The Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/fetterman-depression-senate-return-hoodies-shorts-771886ba8f3caee9be9674d186cd656b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> earlier this year how Fetterman, after getting treatment for depression, worked around the dress code rules for the Senate floor by popping in to vote from the doorway of the Democratic cloakroom or side entrance.
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After Schumer directed the Senate&#8217;s sergeant-at-arms to stop enforcement of the informal rules dictating that members wear business attire on the Senate floor, Fetterman <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fetterman-presides-over-senate-wearing-short-sleeve-shirt-no-tie-and-shorts">presided</a> over the Senate on Wednesday wearing a short-sleeve shirt, no tie.
Reporters <a href="https://twitter.com/CraigCaplan/status/1704867305795068148">spotted him</a> wearing the same casual attire heading to a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) arrives for the Senate&#39;s closed-door meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a short-sleeve shirt and shorts. <a href="https://t.co/2ZWIdGBWYn">pic.twitter.com/2ZWIdGBWYn</a>
&mdash; The Recount (@therecount) <a href="https://twitter.com/therecount/status/1704860582103449643?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 21, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Durbin reportedly said the &#8220;senator in question from Pennsylvania is a personal friend, but I think we need to have standards when it comes to what we’re wearing on the floor of the Senate, and we’re in the process of discussing that right now as to what those standards will be.&#8221;
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), who led a <a href="https://www.grassley.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/grassley_colleagues_to_schumer_-_senate_dress_code.pdf">letter</a> signed by dozens of GOP colleagues urging Schumer to reverse the “misguided” rules change, complimented Durbin for speaking out.
&#8220;Bipartisan agreement is a wonderful thing. Glad to see [Durbin] agree that the Senate should not abandon its standards,&#8221; Scott <a href="https://twitter.com/SenRickScott/status/1704899097868595661">said</a> in a post to X.
Fetterman has taken to social media to advertise <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnFetterman/status/1704504379703779742" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hoodies and other clothing</a> that <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnFetterman/status/1704283329942507924" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mocks</a> his critics. He posted a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fetterman-milks-dress-code-brouhaha-says-hell-wear-a-suit-if-house-jagoffs-meet-his-demands">statement</a> on Wednesday stating what it would take for him to dress up.
&#8220;If those jagoffs in the House stop trying to shut our government down, and fully support Ukraine, then I will save democracy by wearing a suit on the Senate floor next week,&#8221; Fetterman <a href="https://twitter.com/SenFettermanPA/status/1704517579795022038" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a post to X.

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