Latest news with #RichardDurbin
New York Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Democrats Threaten Trump Prosecutor Picks, Pointing to Past Vance Blockade
During his brief tenure in the Senate, Vice President JD Vance blocked Biden administration nominees for U.S. attorney, in a break with past practice. Now, a senior Democrat is citing that as a precedent for insisting on the same standard for President Trump's federal prosecutor nominees, potentially jeopardizing their confirmation. 'There shouldn't be one set of rules for Republicans and another for the Democrats,' said Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, who plans to adhere to what he is calling 'the Vance precedent' for Trump prosecutors unless Republicans offer some concessions. 'You expect me to just look the other way now?' he asked of Republicans at a Judiciary Committee hearing this week. U.S. attorney nominees traditionally sped through the Senate on an expedited basis once they cleared an F.B.I. background check and scrutiny by the Judiciary Committee. The panel does not conduct formal hearings on them, as it does on judges up for lifetime appointments. Mr. Durbin noted that Democrats had followed that practice in agreeing to confirm scores of prosecutors in Mr. Trump's first term. But beginning in June 2023, Mr. Vance, then a first-term Republican senator, said he would oppose moving ahead with all Justice Department nominees, excluding federal marshals, to protest what he contended was the politicization of the department and its pursuit of Mr. Trump in the courts. He said his goal was to 'grind this department to a halt.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Fox News
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Dems call budget bill ‘bureaucratic water torture' as GOP ‘glad to have the ball in our court'
Print Close By Charles Creitz Published May 23, 2025 Senate reaction to the House's passage of its "big, beautiful bill" was sharply divided, with Democrats warning of long-term harm to the working class and Republicans arguing it would help that very group. "Republicans' reconciliation bill dismantles the American Dream and strips health care, food assistance, and more away from millions of hardworking Americans," Senate Minority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., fumed in a Thursday statement. "Republicans are taking a chainsaw to critical services that American families depend on and using them as a piggy bank for tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy." Durbin, who is retiring after a four-decade career in office, quipped that billionaires "win" and American families "lose – all thanks to President Donald Trump." REPUBLICANS READY LATE-NIGHT SESSION ON TRUMP'S 'BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL' AFTER GOP MUTINY The number-two Democrat urged four unnamed Senate Republicans to break with their party and have the "good sense to join Democrats" to stop the bill from reaching the White House. Two Republicans unlikely to heed that call were Sens. Roger Marshall of Kansas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who both offered a "well done" verbal back-pat to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. Marshall said the Senate must deliver the bill to Trump for America's betterment, as Graham cited the border security provisions in the legislation and welcomed the bill to his side of the Capitol. Back in Durbin's camp, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., took to the Senate floor to condemn the "dead of night" vote and claimed Republicans hoped "nobody would notice" their "rotten to the core" bill. Schumer was up late Wednesday, unsuccessfully forcing about a half-dozen motions-to-recess or adjourn as the Republicans held the Senate open to begin the process of undoing California's emissions waivers granted by former President Joe Biden. DEMS WARN HOUSE REPUBLICANS WILL PAY PRICE AT BALLOT BOX FOR PASSING TRUMP'S 'BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL' Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., pointed Fox News Digital to recent comments on the bill, in which he said its goal is truly to "make life better for people so they can afford to pay their mortgage, they can afford to put gas in the car, and afford for their groceries." "That's why we're doing this. This is part of our comprehensive economic plan," Thune said. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., echoed the "cloak of darkness" sentiment to Fox News Digital, saying the bill will "terminate health care for nearly 14 million Americans" and is "not what the people of Wisconsin signed up for." "You can bet I'm going to fight it," Baldwin said. Meanwhile, Sen. Ronald Wyden – the Oregon Democrat and ranking member of the Finance Committee – called the bill a "full-scale assault on Americans' health and safety." "This bill means kids will go hungry, seniors will face greater abuse and neglect in nursing homes, people with disabilities will lose care at home, and millions of working Americans will be subjected to humiliation and bureaucratic water torture just to get health care," Wyden said. "Millions will lose their health insurance, and many more will find it harder to get health care, leading to untold suffering and quiet deaths," Wyden added. Maryland Democrat Angela Alsobrooks told Fox News Digital on Thursday that the Big Beautiful Bill Act will account for the largest food stamp cuts in history. "[It's] beautiful for whom? Certainly not the millions of Americans who rely on SNAP to feed their children and on Medicaid to get their health care," Alsobrooks said, adding the GOP seems "obsessed" with seeing the "poor getting poorer and the rich getting richer." Alsobrooks said the majority of her fellow Old Line State residents agree with her sentiments. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., echoed Alsobrooks' concerns about SNAP and Medicaid. "It's a terrible bill and every senator should reject it," Welch said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP When reached for comment, fellow Vermonter Bernie Sanders directed Fox News Digital to a 20-minute floor speech the democratic socialist made a few days ago. "At a time when the richest people have never had it so good, they see Republican leadership working overtime to make the billionaire class even richer," Sanders said. "At a time when a majority of Americans are struggling to put food on the table and pay for health care, they see Republican leadership making life even more difficult for average Americans." Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., said conversely she is grateful to Trump and Johnson for their "diligent work." Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said that the Senate will carefully consider the House's final product and work to craft final legislation that meets the chamber's rules and prevents the "biggest tax hike in American history," if the Trump Tax Cuts were to expire. New Jersey Sen. Andy Kim released a video message to constituents about the passage on Thursday, calling it one of the most dangerous bills in history. "I want you to pay attention," he told Jerseyans, citing "disastrous things" in the legislation. Thune and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, are expected to make changes to the bill, but they hope to keep them minimal to preserve the "delicate balance" struck by the House, Thune said. The upper chamber hopes to have the final product to Trump by Independence Day. Print Close URL
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US lawmakers consider retail card fee relief
The US Senate is expected to consider the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) as an amendment to cryptocurrency legislation, a move that retail groups say could help reduce consumer costs amid ongoing inflation. The amendment is being proposed as part of the GENIUS Act, which aims to establish federal oversight of stablecoins, digital currencies pegged to traditional assets. The National Retail Federation (NRF) has endorsed the inclusion of the CCCA in the cryptocurrency bill, arguing that the measure would increase credit card market competition and reduce transaction fees, commonly referred to as swipe fees. These fees, set primarily by Visa and Mastercard, currently range between 2% and 4% per transaction and are applied by all issuing banks using those networks. Retailers paid a record $187.2 billion in swipe fees in 2024, according to NRF estimates. These costs, which are typically passed on to consumers, are said to add nearly $1,200 annually to the average household's expenses. The NRF believes that increased competition in credit card processing could provide relief to both retailers and consumers. The Credit Card Competition Act, introduced by Senators Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) and Richard Durbin (D-Illinois), would require the largest US banks — those with assets of $100 billion or more — to enable credit card transactions to be processed on at least two unaffiliated payment networks. This could include networks such as American Express, Discover, or regional debit systems like NYCE or Shazam. Currently, Visa and Mastercard control over 80% of the credit card market and restrict processing to their own networks. The legislation aims to dismantle these limitations, allowing merchants to choose their preferred network. Supporters argue this would prompt greater competition in transaction processing, ultimately lowering costs and improving service quality. The proposed changes would not affect smaller financial institutions, including local community banks and credit unions. Nor would they alter credit card rewards programmes, which are determined by the issuing banks rather than the networks that process the transactions. The CCCA is receiving growing bipartisan support and is being considered at a time when Congress is increasingly focused on consumer protection and financial market reform. By aligning with stablecoin legislation, lawmakers hope to address multiple issues in the financial services sector within a single legislative effort. Retailers and industry analysts will be watching closely as the Senate deliberates the amendment, which could reshape the landscape of credit card processing and impact millions of transactions daily. "US lawmakers consider retail card fee relief" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Illinois AG, Durbin defend state card fee law
This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. Banks and credit unions seeking to block an Illinois law banning interchange fees on taxes and tips are misreading U.S. banking laws, argued the state's attorney general, a coalition of merchants, and U.S. Senator Richard Durbin in briefs defending the state's fee law. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed motions Wednesday opposing the banks' bid for summary judgment and requesting that U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall instead grant the AG summary judgment. Durbin, who authored the Durbin Amendment to cap debit card fees, filed his second amicus brief in six months Wednesday in a federal lawsuit banks brought last year to block a 2024 Illinois law that bans card interchange fees on the sales tax and gratuity portions of card transactions. The Illinois law is set to take effect July 1 and has inspired multiple other states to pursue interchange fee bans on tips and taxes. The plaintiffs – four trade associations representing banks and credit unions – sued in August arguing that federal law preempts Illinois' effort to remove sales tax and gratuities from the transaction amount used to calculate the interchange fee. In December, Kendall granted a partial injunction of the law for national banks and federal savings associations. In their lawsuit, filed in Chicago, the groups, including the American Bankers Association and the Illinois Credit Union League, said the new law 'would not only throw well-operating payment card systems into chaos, it would also undermine the significant benefits, safety, and security that payment card systems provide to all participants.' Banks and card networks, such as Visa and Mastercard, say the fees fund investments in payment systems and fraud prevention, but retailers argue that card swipe fees have increased too much and become overly burdensome. The bank groups filed a motion last month requesting the court grant summary judgment, with opposing briefs due Wednesday. The plaintiffs argue that federal preemption from the National Bank Act applies to 'participants in the intricately interconnected payment system.' In its response, the AG's office says that position 'is hopelessly at odds with the plain language of the statute.' Durbin, who announced this week that he won't seek re-election next year, weighed in initially on the litigation with a brief in October arguing that the Illinois law is compatible with the debit-card amendment bearing his name that became part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. 'The IFPA's reform is modest and measured; it does not remedy the core structural and anticompetitive defects of the interchange fee system, but it would provide helpful relief for Illinois merchants who paid an estimated $488 million in interchange fees on sales tax in 2023 and would help reduce the inflationary effect that these fees have on the retail prices consumers pay,' Durbin wrote in his latest brief. The state act 'fully aligns with the Durbin Amendment's text, its structure, and its goal of constraining network-fixed debit interchange fees to reduce excessively high fee rates,' Durbin added. U.S. businesses paid about $145 billion in fees last year to accept Visa and Mastercard credit and debit cards, according to a March 2025 Nilson Report statistic cited in the merchants' brief. Merchants and the networks have been involved in separate litigation over these fees since 2005. Recommended Reading Durbin jumps into Illinois interchange law fray
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sen. Richard Durbin, Senate's number 2 Democrat, to retire in 2026
April 23 (UPI) -- Sen. Richard Durbin announced Wednesday that he will not seek a sixth term in the Senate in 2026. "The decision of whether to run for reelection has not been easy," Durbin, D-Ill., posted to social media. "But in my heart, I know it's time to pass the torch." Durbin, 80, was a U.S. House member from Illinois from 1983 until his 1996 Senate election to succeed Democratic Sen. Paul Simon. "The people of Illinois have honored me with this responsibility longer than anyone elected to the Senate in our state's history," he said in a video posted on Bluesky. "I am truly grateful," he continued. Durbin, top Democrat on the Senate's Judiciary Committee from 2021 until this year, led the 2022 confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to sit on the nation's high court. On Wednesday, Durbin said in a video that he has "always tried to stand up to power." He was one of 10 Democrats who voted with Senate Republicans to pass the GOP-crafted stopgap spending bill last month, telling reporters it was the "responsible thing to do" in order to avoid a government shutdown. Durbin said the challenges facing the United States are "historic" and "unprecedented." "The threats to our democracy and way of life are very real," he added Wednesday in his video statement, vowing to to fight in his remaining time. Durbin introduced the 2001 DREAM Act to give undocumented immigrants who grew up in America a chance to become a citizen. He later successfully advocated to end the deportation of "Dreamers" to then-President Barack Obama, Durbin's former home state Senate colleague, which led to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Durbin is now the fourth Democrat to pass on a re-election campaign, joining Michigan's Gary Peters, Tina Smith of Minnesota and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire. Meanwhile, a list of people have been rumored as possible names to replace Durbin including U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Lauren Underwood and Robin Kelly, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton and state Sen. Robert Peters.
