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Dick Durbin

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Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator
from Illinois
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 7, 1997
Serving with Roland Burris
Preceded byPaul Simon
29th United States Senate Majority Whip
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 4, 2007
LeaderHarry Reid
Preceded byMitch McConnell (R)
23rd United States Senate Minority Whip
In office
January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2007
LeaderHarry Reid
Preceded byHarry Reid (D)
Succeeded byTrent Lott (R)
20th United States Senate Democratic Whip
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2005
LeaderHarry Reid
Preceded byHarry Reid
Member of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois 20th District
In office
January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1997
Preceded byPaul Findley
Succeeded byJohn Shimkus
Personal details
Born (1944-11-21) November 21, 1944 (age 80)
East St. Louis, Illinois
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseLoretta Schaefer Durbin
ChildrenChristine Durbin (deceased)
Jennifer Durbin
Paul Durbin
ResidenceSpringfield, Illinois
Alma materGeorgetown University,
Georgetown University Law Center
ProfessionLawyer

Richard Joseph "Dick" Durbin (born November 21, 1944) is the senior United States Senator from the U.S. state of Illinois and Democratic Party Whip, the second highest position in the Democratic Party leadership in the Senate. He became Majority Whip of the US Senate when the 110th Congress convened on January 4, 2007. In April 2006, Time magazine listed Senator Durbin as one of "America's 10 Best Senators."[2] He was the first United States Senator to support the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama.

Early life and family

Durbin was born in East St. Louis to an Irish-American father, William Durbin, and a Lithuanian-born mother, Ann Kutkin (Lithuanian: Ona Kutkaitė).[3] He graduated from Assumption High School in East St. Louis in 1962. During his high school years he worked at a meatpacking plant. He earned a B.S. from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1966. He was an intern in the office of Illinois Senator Paul Douglas during his senior year in college. Durbin earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 1969 and was admitted to the Illinois bar later that year.

After graduating from law school, Durbin started a law practice in Springfield. He was legal counsel to Lieutenant Governor Paul Simon from 1969 to 1972, and then legal counsel to the Illinois State Senate Judiciary Committee from 1972 to 1982. He ran for Lieutenant Governor in 1978 as the running mate of State Superintendent of Schools Michael Bakalis; they were defeated by the Republican incumbents, Jim Thompson and Dave O'Neal. He then became an adjunct professor at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine for five years while maintaining his law practice.

Durbin and his wife Loretta had two daughters, Christine and Jennifer, and a son, Paul. After several weeks in the hospital with complications due to a congenital heart condition, Christine died on November 1, 2008.[4]

U.S. House of Representatives

In 1982, Durbin won the Democratic nomination for the 20th Congressional District, which includes most of Springfield. He scored a huge upset, defeating 22-year incumbent Paul Findley. Durbin was reelected six times, rarely facing serious opposition, and winning more than 55% of the vote in each election except 1994.

Illinois's 20th congressional district: Results 1982–1994[5]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct
1982 Richard J. Durbin 100,758 50.4% Paul Findley (inc.) 99,348 49.6%
1984 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 145,092 61.3% Richard Austin 91,728 38.7%
1986 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 126,556 68.1% Kevin McCarthey 59,291 31.9%
1988 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 153,341 68.9% Paul Jurgens 69,303 31.1%
1990 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 130,114 66.2% Paul Jurgens 66,433 33.8%
1992 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 154,869 56.5% John M. Shimkus 119,219 43.5%
1994 Richard J. Durbin (inc.) 108,034 54.8% Bill Owens 88,964 45.2%

U.S. Senate

Durbin speaks during the final night of the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado, introducing his party's nominee, fellow Illinoisan Barack Obama.

Leadership

In 1996, Durbin defeated Pat Quinn to become the Democratic Party's nominee to replace the retiring Democratic incumbent, Senator Paul Simon, a long-time friend. He faced Republican State Representative Al Salvi in the November general election. Although the U.S. Senate election was initially expected to be competitive, Durbin won by a surprising 15-point margin, undoubtedly helped by Bill Clinton's 18-point win in Illinois that year.

In 2001, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle appointed him to the role of Assistant Democratic Floor Leader. On November 5, 2004, Durbin announced that he had enough committed votes to become the Democratic Whip in the 109th Congress. He became the first Illinois Senator to serve as Senate Whip since Everett Dirksen in the late 1950s. His role marks the fifth time in history an Illinois Senator has served as a Senate leader.[6]

He became Majority Whip when the Democrats gained control of the Senate after the 2006 elections. Durbin served as Assistant Minority Leader from 2004 until 2006, when the Democrats became the Majority party in the Senate. He then assumed the role of Assistant Majority Leader, or Majority Whip.

Durbin also currently serves as chairman for two Senate Subcommittees: the Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law and the Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government.[7]

In 2000 Durbin was reportedly on the short list of possible Democratic nominees for Vice President of the United States considered by Al Gore, along with fellow Senators John Kerry of Massachusetts, John Edwards of North Carolina, Bob Graham of Florida, former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell of Maine, House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri, former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt.[8] Gore, however, ultimately selected Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut to be his running mate.

Committee assignments

Political positions

Abortion

As a congressman, Durbin voted consistently to uphold pre-existing restrictions on abortion or impose new limitations– including supporting a Constitutional amendment that would have nullifed Roe v. Wade.[9]

Congressman Durbin reversed this stance in 1989, and has since voted to maintain access to abortion, including support for Medicaid funding of the procedure, and opposition to any limitation that he considers a practical or potential encroachment upon Roe.[10] Senator Durbin has maintained that this reversal came about as a result of personal reflection and his growing awareness of potentially harmful implications of his previous policy with respect to women facing dangerous pregnancies.[11] While visiting a home for abused children in Quincy, Illinois, the director, a friend, asked him to speak with two girls who were about to turn 18 and be turned out of state care. Talking with the girls, victims of gang rape and incest, made him reconsider his position on the subject. He says, "I still oppose abortion and would try my best to convince any woman in my family to carry the baby to term. But I believe that ultimately the decision must be made by the woman, her doctor, her family, and her conscience."[12]

Darfur

On March 2, 2005, former Senator Jon Corzine presented the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act (S. 495) to the Senate. Durbin was one of 40 senators who co-sponsored the bill. The Darfur Accountability Act is noted as the premier legislative attempt to instill peace in Darfur. The bill asks that all people involved in or deemed in some way responsible for the genocide in Darfur be denied visas and entrance to the U.S.

In 2006, Durbin co-sponsored the Durbin-Leahy Amendment to the Supplemental Appropriations bill for emergency funding to instill peace in Darfur. In 2006, he also co-sponsored the Lieberman Resolution, and the Clinton Amendment.

On June 7, 2007, Durbin introduced the Sudan Disclosure Enforcement Act, "Aimed at enhancing the U.S. Government's ability to impose penalties on violators of U.S. sanctions against Sudan." This bill calls for the United Nations Security Council to vote on sanctions against the Sudanese Government for allowing genocide in Darfur.

Durbin is recognized for voting in favor of all Darfur related legislation to date. In addition to the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act, he has also supported the Civilian Protection No-Fly Zone Act, the Hybrid Force Resolution, and the Sudan Divestment Authorization Act.

HIV/AIDS

In March 2007, Durbin introduced the African Health Capacity Investment Act of 2007 to the Senate. The bill was designed so that over a three year period, the U.S. would supply over $600 million to help create safer medical facilities and working conditions, and the recruitment and training of doctors from all over the continent.

In December 2007, Durbin and two other senators co-sponsored Senator Kerry’s Nondiscrimination in Travel and Immigration Act. Also, in March 2007, Durbin joined thirty-two other Senators to co-sponsor the Early Treatment for HIV Act of 2007.

Iraq War

On September 9, 2002, Durbin was the first of four Democratic senators (the others being Sens. Bob Graham, Feinstein, and Levin) on the Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), responding to the Bush administration's request for a joint Congressional resolution authorizing a preemptive war on Iraq without having prepared a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), to ask George Tenet, the Director of Central Intelligence, to prepare a NIE on the status of Iraq's WMD programs.[13] Durbin was one of the few senators who read the resulting prepared October 1, 2002 NIE, Iraq's Continuing Programs for Weapons of Mass Destruction.[14]

On September 29, 2002, Durbin held a news conference in Chicago to announce that "absent dramatic changes" in the resolution, he would vote against the resolution authorizing war on Iraq.[15] On October 2, 2002, at the first high-profile Chicago anti-Iraq War rally in Federal Plaza, Durbin repeated his promise to oppose the resolution in a letter read during the rally.[16]

On October 10, 2002, the U.S. Senate failed to pass Durbin's amendment to the resolution to strike "the continuing threat posed by Iraq" and insert "an imminent threat posed by Iraq's weapons of mass destruction", by a vote of 30 to 70, with the majority of Democratic senators voting for the amendment, but with 21 Democratic senators joining all 49 Republican senators voting against it.[17] On October 11, 2002, Durbin was one of 23 U.S. Senators to vote against the joint Congressional resolution authorizing the Iraq War.[18]

On April 25, 2007, Durbin said that as an intelligence committee member he knew in 2002 from classified information that the American people were being misled by the Bush Administration into a war on Iraq, but he could not reveal this because, as an intelligence committee member, he was sworn to secrecy.[19] This revelation prompted an online attack ad against Durbin by the National Republican Senatorial Committee.[20]

Tobacco regulation

In 1987, Durbin introduced major tobacco regulation legislation in the House that banned cigarette smoking on airline flights of two hours or less. He was joined by Rep. C. W. Bill Young, a Republican from Florida, in saying that the rights of smokers to smoke end where their smoking affects the health and safety of others, such as on airplanes. The bill went on to pass as part of the 1988 transportation spending bill. In 1989 the legislation was followed by a new law that banned cigarette smoking on all domestic airline flights.[21]

In March 1994 Durbin proposed an amendment to the Improving America's Schools Act that required schools that receive Federal drug prevention money to teach elementary and secondary students about the dangers of tobacco in addition to those of drugs and alcohol. The amendment also required that schools warn students against tobacco and teach them how to resist peer pressure to smoke.[22]

In February 2008 Durbin called on Congress to support a measure that would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to oversee the tobacco industry. This measure would require companies to disclose the contents of tobacco products, restrict advertising and promotions, and mandate the removal of harmful ingredients in tobacco products. The measure would also prohibit tobacco companies from using terms such as "low risk", "light" and "mild" on packaging.

Durbin attributes his strong stance against tobacco and the tobacco industry to his father, who he says smoked two packs of Camels a day and died of lung cancer when Durbin was younger.

Freedom of Speech

In June 2006, Durbin voted against a federal ban on burning the U.S. flag as a form of protest.[23]

In 2007, speaking as Senate Majority Whip, Durbin went on record as stating that "It’s time to reinstitute the Fairness Doctrine,"[24]

Financial crisis of 2007–2009

On April 27th, 2009, in an interview with WJJG talk radio host Ray Hanania, Durbin accused banks of creating the financial crisis of 2007–2009. Durbin expressed a belief that many of the banks responsible for creating the crisis "own the place", referring to the power wielded by the banking lobby on Capitol Hill.[25]

Rod Blagojevich

Shortly after Governor Rod Blagojevich's arrest on federal corruption charges on December 9, 2008, Durbin called for the Illinois legislature to quickly pass legislation for a special election to fill then President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat.[26] He stated that no United States Senate appointment of Blagojevich's could produce a credible replacement under the circumstances.[27]

Durbin and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid led all 50 members of the Senate Democratic Caucus in writing Illinois Governor Blagojevich to urge him to resign and not name a successor to Illinois Senator Obama following Blagojevich's arrest.[28] Despite this, the governor appointed Roland Burris to the seat on December 30. Burris is a former state official and donated thousands to Blagojevich's re-election fund.[citation needed]

Other political positions

Among Durbin's legislative causes are asbestos regulation and environmental protection, particularly the protection of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He has also been noted[citation needed] for his work, along with Senators Patrick Leahy and Charles Schumer, in attempting to block President Bush's judicial nominations, as well as for efforts to prevent closure of military bases in Illinois.

In January 2005, Durbin changed his longstanding position on sugar tariffs and price supports. After several years of voting to keep sugar quotas and price supports, Durbin now favors abolishing the program. "The sugar program depended on congressmen like me from states that grew corn," Durbin said, referring to the fact that, though they were formerly a single entity, the sugar market and the corn syrup market are now largely separate.[29]

In May 2006, Durbin campaigned to maintain a $0.54 per gallon tariff on imported ethanol. Durbin justified the tariff by joining Senator Barack Obama in stating that "ethanol imports are neither necessary nor a practical response to current gasoline prices," arguing instead that domestic ethanol production is sufficient and expanding.[30]

Durbin has also been a major proponent of expanded Amtrak funding and support. In October 2007, he opposed a bill in the Illinois General Assembly that would allow three casinos to be built: "I really, really think we ought to stop and catch our breath and say, 'Is this the future of Illinois? That every time we want to do something we'll just build more casinos?'"[31]

Dick Durbin is currently sponsoring a bill (Senate Bill 500) that calls for a maximum annual interest rate cap of 36%, including all interest and fees.[32] This bill will purportedly put an end to predatory lending activities. However, if passed, it will have a far-reaching impact on many industries - including pawn shop lending, auto title lending, and payday lending - and the customers who rely on their short-term, small-dollar loans.[33]

Interest group ratings

Durbin's ratings from interest groups indicate how often he votes in agreement with their priorities. Durbin's voting record is very similar to the Democratic caucus position, consistent with his leadership position as Whip, which has the duty of persuading senators to follow the party line in their votes.

Abortion issues

Agriculture

Animal rights and wildlife

Budget, spending, and taxes

Civil liberties and civil rights

Conservative

Education

Energy

Environmental

Family and children

Government reform

Guns

Immigration

Labor

Seniors and Social Security

Veterans

Welfare and poverty

Women

Other

Guantanamo interrogation controversy

Durbin received a lot of media attention on June 14, 2005, when in the U.S. Senate chambers he compared interrogation techniques used at Camp X-Ray, Guantanamo Bay, as reported by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with those utilized by such regimes as Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and the Khmer Rouge:

"When you read some of the graphic descriptions of what has occurred here– I almost hesitate to put them in the record, and yet they have to be added to this debate. Let me read to you what one FBI agent saw. And I quote from his report:
"On a couple of occasions, I entered interview rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food or water. Most times they urinated or defecated on themselves, and had been left there for 18–24 hours or more. On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold.... On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his hair out throughout the night. On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor.
"If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime– Pol Pot or others– that had no concern for human beings. Sadly, that is not the case. This was the action of Americans in the treatment of their prisoners."[34]

Durbin’s comments drew widespread criticism that comparing U.S. actions to such regimes was insulting to both the U.S. and to victims of genocide. Radio host Rush Limbaugh and White House deputy chief of staff Karl Rove accused Durbin of treason,[35] while former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich called on the Senate to censure Durbin.[36] Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, whose son Patrick was serving in U.S. Army, also called on Durbin to apologize for his remarks saying that “I think it's a disgrace to say that any man or woman in the military would act like that”.[37] New Mexico Democratic state party chairman, John Wertheim, and Arizona Democratic party chairman Jim Pederson were also critical of Durbin’s remarks.[38] The leader of the Veterans of Foreign Wars also demanded an apology,[39] as did the Anti-Defamation League[37] Durbin initially did not apologize, but on June 21, 2005, he went before the Senate, saying, "More than most people, a senator lives by his words ... occasionally words fail us, occasionally we will fail words."[40]

Andrew Sullivan, former editor of The New Republic, praised Durbin for raising serious moral issues about U.S. policy.[41] Other commentators, including liberal commentator Markos Moulitsas Zúniga of Daily Kos, condemned Durbin for apologizing to his critics, arguing Durbin made a mistake in making himself, rather than detention and torture concerns at Guantanamo Bay, the focus of media coverage.[42][43]

Electoral history

See also: United States Senate election in Illinois, 2008
Illinois Senator (Class II): Results 1996–2002[5]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1996 Richard J. Durbin 2,384,028 56% Al Salvi 1,728,824 41% Steven H. Perry Reform 61,023 1% Robin J. Miller Libertarian 41,218 1% Chad Koppie U.S. Taxpayers 17,563 <1% James E. Davis Natural Law 13,838 <1%
2002 Richard J. Durbin 2,103,766 60% Jim Durkin 1,325,703 38% Steven Burgauer Libertarian 57,382 2%
  • Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1996, write-ins received 4,228 votes.
Vote Totals for Senate Candidates: Results 2008[44]
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
2008 Richard J. Durbin 3,516,846 67.8% Steve Sauerberg[45] 1,479,984 28.5% Kathy J. Cummings Green 119,135 2.2% Larry A. Stafford Libertarian 50,224 <1% Chad N. Koppie Constitution 24,059 <1%

References

  1. ^ http://www.opensecrets.org/pfds/pfd2005/N00004981_2005.pdf
  2. ^ "Dick Durbin: The Debater" - Time
  3. ^ durbin
  4. ^ "Daughter of Illinois Sen. Durbin dies at 40 -- chicagotribune.com". www.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
  5. ^ a b "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
  6. ^ Dick Durbin: Bush Fighter - January 27, 2005
  7. ^ Project Vote Smart - Senator Richard J. "Dick" Durbin - Biography
  8. ^ Gore considers naming VP immediately after GOP convention - June 13, 2000
  9. ^ The Durbin Abortion Papers
  10. ^ Richard Durbin on Abortion
  11. ^ Excerpt from NBC News' Meet the Press
  12. ^ Parsons, Christi (2007-12-02), "Dick Durbin's Challenge", Chicago Tribune, pp. 15–19, 26–27{{citation}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  13. ^ Select Committee on Intelligence (July 9, 2004). "Report on the U.S. Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq" (PDF).
    Durbin, Richard (September 10, 2002). "Assessing Iraq's military capabilities". Congressional Record--Senate. pp. pp. S8427-S8429. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
    Sweet, Lynn (September 11, 2002). "U.S. lacks Iraq analysis: Durbin" (paid archive). Chicago Sun-Times. p. 5.
  14. ^ Windrem, Bob; Murray, Mark (May 25, 2007). "Hillary and the 2002 NIE". msnbc.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
    CNN (May 29, 2007). "Records: Senators who OK'd war didn't read key report". cnn.com. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
    Raju, Manu; Schor, Elana; Wurman, Ilan (June 19, 2007). "Few senators read Iraq NIE report". The Hill.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ Dorning, Mike; Chase, John (September 30, 2002). "Durbin opposes Bush war resolution" (paid archive). Chicago Tribune. p. 1 (Metro).{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ Glauber, Bill (October 3, 2002). "War protesters gentler, but passion still burns" (paid archive). Chicago Tribune. p. 1.
    Strausberg, Chinta (October 3, 2002). "War with Iraq undermines U.N." (paid archive). Chicago Defender. p. 1.
    Bryant, Greg (October 2, 2002). "300 protesters rally to oppose war with Iraq". Medill News Service.
    Katz, Marilyn (October 2, 2007). "Five Years Since Our First Action". Chicagoans Against War & Injustice.
  17. ^ U.S. Senate (October 10, 2002). "Roll call vote No. 236 on the Durbin Amendment No. 4865".
    Sweet, Lynn (October 11, 2002). "Durbin loses bid to limit authority" (paid archive). Chicago Sun-Times. p. 7.
  18. ^ U.S. Senate (October 11, 2002). "Roll call vote No. 237 on H.J.Res. 114".
    Goldberg, Michelle (November 11, 2002). "Wellstone was right". Salon.com.
  19. ^ Durbin, Richard (April 25, 2007). "Iraq Supplemental Appropriations Bill". Congressional Record--Senate. pp. pp. S5026-S5028. {{cite web}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
    Lengell, Sean (April 27, 2007). "Durbin kept silent on prewar knowledge" (paid archive). The Washington Times. p. A1.
    Oberman, Keith (April 27, 2007). "5. Changing Tenets". Countdown with Keith Olbermann. msnbc.com.
    SilentPatriot (April 28, 2007). "Sen. Durbin drops bombshells on the Senate floor". Crooks and Liars.
  20. ^ Krol, Eric (May 3, 2007). "GOP goes after Durbin with online ad" (paid archive). Daily Herald. p. 10.
    Byrne, Dennis (May 7, 2007). "Oath upheld, but at what cost?" (paid archive). Chicago Tribune. p. 21.
  21. ^ "House Passes Ban on Smoking on Flights of 2 Hours or Less". Associated Press. July 15, 1987.
  22. ^ Katharine Seelye (March 23, 1994). "Congress Considers Smoking Ban in Schools".
  23. ^ 109th Congress, 2nd session, Senate vote 189 | Congress votes database | washingtonpost.com
  24. ^ TheHill.com - GOP preps for talk radio confrontation
  25. ^ "Dick Durbin: Banks "Frankly Own The Place"". www.HuffingtonPost.com. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
  26. ^ Some Illinois lawmakers call for Blagojevich to resign
  27. ^ Durbin urges special election to succeed Obama
  28. ^ Barack Obama, U.S. senators, state officials urge Rod Blagojevich to resign
  29. ^ Congressman Mark Steven Kirk - 10th District of Illinois
  30. ^ [1][dead link‍]
  31. ^ "Durbin Cautions State on Casino Plan". WBEZ. 2007-10-08. Retrieved 2008-11-09. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthor= (help)
  32. ^ "S. 500: Protecting Consumers from Unreasonable Credit Rates Act of 2009". Govtrack.us. 2009-02-26. Retrieved 2009-03-26. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthor= (help)
  33. ^ Meyers, Lawrence (2009-03-26). "Sen. Durbin's Scheme to Rip Off Consumers". Blogger News Network. Retrieved 2009-03-26. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthor= (help)
  34. ^ [2][dead link‍]
  35. ^ Harper's Magazine, Stabbed in the Back!: The past and future of a right-wing myth
  36. ^ [3][dead link‍]
  37. ^ a b Durbin Apologizes for Remarks on Abuse
  38. ^ Durbin's Gitmo remarks draw fire back in Illinois
  39. ^ Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) :: News
  40. ^ DURBIN STATEMENT OF REGRET (6-21-2005)
  41. ^ The Daily Dish
  42. ^ CT article ]
  43. ^ Daily Kos: Durbin fucked up
  44. ^ Ballots cast in IL for General Election, 2008
  45. ^ Durbin breezes to third term in U.S. Senate - Chicago Tribune
Wikiquote has quotations related to Dick Durbin.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 20th congressional district
January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1997 		Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 2) from Illinois
January 7, 1997 – present
Served alongside: Carol Moseley Braun, Peter Fitzgerald, Barack Obama, Roland Burris 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by United States Senate Minority Whip
January 3, 2005–January 3, 2007 		Succeeded by
Preceded by United States Senate Majority Whip
January 4, 2007–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts
January 4, 2007–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Democratic Party nominee for United States Senator from Illinois
(Class 2)
1996, 2002, 2008 		Succeeded by
Current nominee
Preceded by Senate Democratic Whip
January 3, 2005 - present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by United States Senators by seniority
41st 		Succeeded by


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