Dick Durbin: “I am not sure of the man's name, but I want to thank a public policy professor at Western Illinois University. About a…”

“I am not sure of the man's name, but I want to thank a public policy professor at Western Illinois University. About a decade ago, this astute professor was talking with one of his best graduate students about his future. The professor knew that the young man was hoping to put his talent and training to good use working as a city planner or city manager in a small Illinois town--maybe a town like the one in which the young man had grown up. The professor suggested another possibility. He asked his student: ``Have you ever considered going to Washington and working on Capitol Hill? I think you might like it, and you'd be good at it.'' Fortunately for me and for countless others in my State of Illinois, that young man Bart Ellefritz, loves new challenges and adventures, so he decided to trust his professor's advice. He moved to Washington and landed a job as an intern in Senator Harry Reid's personal office. That is when my office first became aware of him. Before long, I hired Bart to work as a staff assistant on my Judiciary Committee staff. Bart mastered that job in no time flat and was ready for his next challenge, so he moved home to Illinois to work in my Springfield office doing casework. For those who may be unfamiliar with that term, ``casework'' is a word we use to describe efforts by our staff members who work to help people with specific problems--to try to cut through red tape and make government work better for people.…”