Dick Durbin

62 years ago today, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which struck down laws permitting racially segregated schools in 17 States and the District of Columbia. The Court overturned Plessy v. Ferguson, the…

Good. I hope the next thing we can agree on is that we want to make certain that our veterans are treated fairly, that they are given every consideration for having served our country, but we do not want to put them in harm's way either by…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Ernst). Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 52, nays 45, as follows…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 68, nays 29, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 50, nays 47, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No…

I announce that the Senator from Maine (Mr. King), the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders), and the Senator from Oregon (Mr. Wyden) are necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Lankford). Are there any other Senators in the Chamber…

3 months ago President Barack Obama asked this Congress for funding to address a public health emergency: combating the Zika Virus. I am pleased that this week, 14 weeks after his request, we are going to respond. We are not responding in…

I am honored to represent the State of Illinois. It is a big State. From Chicago to Carroll at the southern tip of our State is 400 miles, and, of course, there is more State north of Chicago. I traveled the State over the last several…

I wish to speak about the epidemic of gun violence that continues to plague our Nation. Every year, around 32,000 Americans are killed by guns. According to recent Centers for Disease Control statistics, every day, on average, 297…

2 weeks ago I lost a dear friend and my hometown of Springfield, IL, lost one of its best. His name was Earl Wallace Henderson, but everyone knew him as Wally. He was an acclaimed architect who helped design Springfield's future while, at…

I ask unanimous consent to be allowed to speak as in morning business. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Prescription Opioid Abuse

I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer) and the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) are necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Hoeven). Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The result was…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Flake). Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 57, nays 42, as follows…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Perdue). Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The result was announced--yeas 52, nays 47, as follows…

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The result was announced--yeas 39, nays 60, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No…

I thank the Chair. Judicial Nominations Mr. President, the Executive Calendar is sitting here on the table for each Member of the Senate to take a look at. I have renamed it. It is no longer the Executive Calendar; it is the political…

There are no time limits agreed to? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The time is evenly divided until 4:30 p.m.

I announce that the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) is necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote? The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 97, nays 2, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No…

southern Illinois lost a legend and one of its brightest lights. Last week, Barbara Brown passed away at the age of 61. Barbara was blessed with every God-given gift one could ask for: intelligence, strength, compassion, kindness--just to…

will the Presiding Officer tell us what the order of business is. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate is postcloture on amendment No. 3801.

this morning I joined many of my colleagues in bidding a formal farewell to our colleague, Senator Bob Bennett, who died last week. It was great to see Senators from both sides of the aisle at Senator Bennett's viewing and funeral service…

there are publications given to us on the floor of the Senate. One of them is the Executive Calendar. This Executive Calendar and parts of it may be characterized as a political obituary column because, you see, these are the nominees of…

I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Gardner). Without objection, it is so ordered. Remembering Bob Bennett

I was necessarily absent from this evening's vote on cloture on the substitute amendment No. 3801 to the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, H.R. 2028, which was not agreed to. On rollcall vote No. 66…

I wish to address two different issues this morning, but I think both are timely and important. The first issue I will address has to do with a telephone conversation I had a few minutes ago with Dr. Thomas Frieden. Dr. Frieden heads up…