Durbin Statement On President Trump's State Of The Union Address

Durbin Statement On President Trump's State Of The Union Address

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement on President Trump's State of the Union Address:

"If grandstanding paid for groceries, the President would have ridden to the American peoples' rescue tonight. But it doesn't work that way. Instead, the President delivered empty platitudes about the success of his first year back in office.

"In America's 250th year, our democracy is facing a serious test under this President. But Democrats are fighting to bring down costs, end the chaos, and fight corruption."

Durbin's guest for tonight's State of the Union was Tereza Lee. She inspired Durbin to introduce the Dream Act in 2001 when he learned of her story after outreach by Ann Monaco, Tereza's teacher at the Merit School of Music in Chicago. Tereza was a musical prodigy who had played as a soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She had been accepted into several of the country's most prestigious music schools, but she had a problem-her parents had brought her to the United States when she was two, and she was undocumented. Frustrated by the lack of options in the immigration system for young people who were brought here as children and infants by their parents, Durbin started working on the Dream Act.

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