Free Republic

President Donald Trump has said he was "totally misrepresented" by those saying he used the term "shithole" to describe African nations last week. Mr Trump also said the allegation was hurting efforts to strike a deal to protect so-called Dreamer immigrants. The president was responding to a claim by Democratic Senator Dick Durbin that he used "vile and racist" language during a meeting on immigration reform. The alleged remarks sparked global outrage and demands that he apologise. "There is no other word one can use but racist," said a UN spokesman. On Monday, two senators who said he did indeed...

WASHINGTON — Once considered a long shot among a dozen or more potential running mates for Al Gore, Sen. Richard Durbin has emerged as one of a few serious contenders, Democratic strategists say. Sen. Durbin confirms meeting once and talking twice by telephone in recent weeks with former Secretary of State Warren Christopher, who is conducting the vice-presidential search process for the Gore campaign. "Is he on the list? Yes," says a senior Democratic Party official from the Midwest with close ties to the campaign. "Is he strong? Absolutely." While he once laughed off the veepstakes speculation, Sen. Durbin now...

Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) yesterday offered a tearful apology on the Senate floor for comparing the alleged abuse of prisoners by American troops to techniques used by the Nazis, the Soviets and the Khmer Rouge, as he sought to quell a frenzy of Republican-led criticism. Durbin, the Democratic whip, acknowledged that "more than most people, a senator lives by his words" but that "occasionally words will fail us and occasionally we will fail words." Choking up, he said: "Some may believe that my remarks crossed the line. To them, I extend my heartfelt apologies." He singled out the victims...

Illinois Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin is full of righteous indignation these days regarding President Trump's comments in a private meeting. Following the meeting, Durbin ran outside to whine to the media. Trump wants immigrants who come to America wanting to be Americans who will make America and themselves successful. Durbin wants immigrants who come to America wanting to be Democrats dependent on government who will make the Democratic Party successful. He wants to bring in the huddled masses yearning to get free stuff, and the American citizen taxpayer be damned. The fact is, Durbin is just another political hack who...

Democrats and the media think they have the golden bullet to take down Trump, in the form of the “s–thole” comment during DACA negotiations behind closed doors. There are conflicting claims and reports as to whether the term was used, and to whom he was referring if it were used. Original reports said it was mentioned in relation to Haiti, but that has been walked back. Whether you agree with the comment or not, assuming it were used, it hardly merits the current obsession, with no sign of letting up. It’s 24/7. Many Republicans are asking only “how high” they...

Today ( Chuck Schumer tweeted this) about his comrade-in-arms, Dick Durbin: "To impugn @SenatorDurbin’s integrity is disgraceful. Whether you agree with him on the issues or not, he is one of the most honorable members of the Senate. Actually, Durbin is one of the slimiest members of the Senate. And that covers lots of territory.[snip]In addition to making stuff up, Durbin is willing, if not eager, to impugn the integrity of those who deserve better. During the Bush administration, he (he compared) American soldiers to Nazis, Soviets, and Pol Pot.

The senator, David Perdue of Georgia, said Mr. Trump “did not use that word,” and he accused another participant in the White House meeting, Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, of a “gross misrepresentation” of what the president had said at the session. He and another Republican senator at the meeting, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, had previously said they did “not recall the president saying these comments specifically.” But by Sunday, their recollections appeared to have sharpened, and Mr. Cotton joined Mr. Perdue in disputing Mr. Durbin’s account. But in Congress, the battle took on an increasingly personal dimension...

It didn't take much for Democrats to take the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) negotiation to a new low, seeing how they had no intention of reaching any kind of compromise with President Trump. As for what was said during said negotiations, it just comes down to whom you believe. Let's not forget, it was former Senator Harry Reid who repeatedly went to the floor and accused then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney of not paying his taxes and when called on it, replied "He didn't win, did he?" So we all know Democrats are not beyond blatantly lying on protected...

The two senators who struck a deal with each other on an immigration deal signaled Friday they’ll push ahead with their bargain despite opposition from President Trump, saying they sense growing bipartisan support. The comments by Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican, came a day after they were in a meeting where the president reportedly used a disparaging expletive to refer to some developing countries such as Haiti and El Salvador. ~snip~ Mr. Durbin, meanwhile, described the deal he and Mr. Graham reached as “a genuine compromise.”

Friday, Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) backed up a Washington Post report claiming President Donald Trump referred to certain nations as “shithole countries” in a bipartisan meeting Trump held with members of Congress on immigration policy. Durbin’s remarks were made to reporters and captured by MSNBC’s camera. Durbin also criticized Trump for his use of the term “chain migration” because according to the Senate Minority Whip, it was offensive to African-Americans that “migrated” to the United States chains.

We have an update on the previous thread, which I'll link below. Trump denied saying "sh*thole" in the meeting, Dick Durbin came out and said Trump said it: “In the course of his comments, [President Trump] said things which were hate-filled, vile and racist,” Sen. Dick Durbin says of “sh*thole countries” comments. “He said these hate-filled things and he said them repeatedly.” http://cbsn.ws/2mngMu4 Of course, he then dramatized it to the extreme: "The most disheartening thing to me is, my belief that, that was the first time words that hateful have been spoken in the Oval Office of the White...

President Donald Trump on Friday appeared to deny he insulted Haiti and African nations as "shithole countries” but admitted he used “tough” language during a discussion about an immigration deal with lawmakers. “The language used by me at the DACA meeting was tough, but this was not the language used,” Trump tweeted. “What was really tough was the outlandish proposal made - a big setback for DACA!” On Thursday, Trump used vulgar language during a meeting with a bipartisan group of senators at the White House, a Democratic aide briefed on the meeting told NBC News. When they were talking...

Democrats insisted President Donald Trump should send them a 'shorter list' of immigration priorities — so he sent them on Friday a new copy of his October 8 priorities 'plus' a new cost estimate for his border wall.... Sen. Dick Durbin issued an angry response to Trump’s tough negotiating style: "It’s outrageous that the White House would undercut months of bipartisan efforts by again trying to put its entire wish-list of hardline anti-immigrant bills—plus an additional $18 billion in wall funding. Durbin also tried to blame Trump for the Democrats’ refusal to offer any significant border security upgrade, or to...

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) again came to the Senate floor today to call on Congressional Republicans to pass the bipartisan Dream Act now. More than 12,000 Dreamers have already lost their DACA status at a rate of roughly 1,000 each week. Beginning early next year, 1,000 additional young people will lose their protection from deportation each day.

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin is prodding GOP Senators in closed-door negotiations to accept his huge DREAM amnesty in exchange for his promise to let low-ranking border officials continue routine, non-political practices. For example, Durbin’s lopsided proposal says Democrats will allow customs officials to buy commonplace $3,000 computerized license-plate readers for cheaply identifying cars as they pass through the border. But that agreement to buy the cost-saving devices is conditional on GOP Senators supporting the Democrats’ amnesty of 3.25 million ‘dreamer’ illegals — plus millions of their illegal immigrant parents and chain-migration relatives — at the cost of at least $26...

WASHINGTON—U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced new legislation to address the growing threat of white supremacist groups and other violent domestic extremists. The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act would enhance the federal government’s efforts to prevent domestic terrorism by requiring federal law enforcement agencies to regularly assess those threats and provide training and resources to assist state, local, and tribal law enforcement in addressing these threats.According to a May 2017 intelligence bulletin by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), white supremacist extremism poses a persistent threat of lethal violence, and white supremacists...

Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) refused to “get into the hypotheticals,” when asked if he would vote to expel Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) if he is convicted at his federal corruption trial. Durbin said, “I’m not going to get into the hypotheticals on either of these situations. As I said, several steps removed. I’m hopeful that when all is said and done that Bob Menendez will be returning to the Senate representing the state of New Jersey.

Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin on Wednesday attributed the guns laws in Indiana for the continued wave of violence in neighboring Chicago.“We’re next to Indiana and if you got to a gun show in Indiana, you can purchase a gun without a background check. And so that’s what’s happening,” Mr. Durbin,a Democrat, said on MSNBC. “The drug gangs and these thugs are filling up the trunks of their car and heading into the neighborhoods of Chicago. And we see these gun violence crimes happening every single day.”Mr. Durbin said that nearly 600 people have died in Chicago due to gun-related deaths...

Republicans are digging in ahead of a looming battle over President Trump's judicial nominees. Senate GOP leadership wants to clear four picks this week for the circuit courts—which are second in line to the Supreme Court—amid pressure from conservatives to pick up the pace. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) warned that Republicans would confirm all of the nominees, even if it meant keeping lawmakers in town through a rare weekend session. “We'll confirm all of them this week no matter how long it takes,” McConnell said from the Senate floor. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), the No. 2 Senate Republican,...

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) predicted that Democrats would lose to President Trump again in 2020 if they are too liberal. Durbin — the second highest-ranking Democrat in the Senate — said on local Chicago radio station WLS-AM on Sunday that Democrats shouldn't “overdo it” by acting too liberal in response to Trump. The senator was responding to comments by Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.), who the host of the radio show Durbin was on said warned Democrats against moving too far to the left out of fear they could lose votes to Trump. "We need to be balanced. She's right about...