{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-announces-his-final-introduction-of-the-dream-act-and-shares-150th-dreamer-story-on-the-senate-floor", "Durbin Announces His Final Introduction Of The Dream Act & Shares 150th Dreamer Story On The Senate Floor", "2025-12-03", "2025", "2025-12", "Democrat", "Senate", "IL", "Richard J. Durbin", "D000563", "www.durbin.senate.gov", "durbin", "https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases", "scraper", "Durbin has introduced the Dream Act every Congress since 2001; this introduction marks his final introduction of the legislation before the end of his congressional career\n\nWASHINGTON \u2013 In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced that he and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) will introduce the Dream Act of 2025 tomorrow. The bipartisan legislation would allow noncitizens without lawful status who were brought to the United States as children and meet certain education, military service, or work requirements to earn lawful permanent residence. These young people, known as Dreamers, have lived in America since they were children, built their lives here, and are American in every way except for their immigration status. However, under current law there is often no chance for them to ever become citizens and fulfill their potential.\n\nBeginning in 2001, Durbin introduced the Dream Act to give young immigrants the chance to earn U.S. citizenship. He has introduced the legislation every Congress since.\n\n\u201cIt was 24 years ago that I introduced a measure called the Dream Act\u2026 These young immigrants [were] brought to the United States as children. Like millions of American children\u2026 [they] grew up dreaming of getting their first job, passing their driver\u2019s license test, and applying to college. But they had a problem. Under the current law, they were not legal to do those things. So the Dream Act gives them a chance, if brought to the United States as children, [to] have a path to citizenship after earning their way in a rather long and rigorous process,\u201d Durbin said.\n\nDurbin continued, \u201cIt was 2001 when I first introduced bipartisan legislation to provide Dreamers with a pathway to citizenship. My cosponsor was Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, who was then the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee\u2026 I\u2019m sad to say that more than two decades later, Dreamers are still waiting for that bill to pass.\u201d\n\nIn 2010, Durbin sent a letter, joined by the late Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), asking then-President Obama to stop the deportation of Dreamers. Thirteen years ago, President Obama responded by announcing the DACA program. More than 830,000 Dreamers have since come forward and received DACA, which has allowed them to contribute more fully to their country as teachers, nurses, doctors, engineers, and small business owners.\n\n\u201cSadly, since President Obama established the program, many Republicans have waged a relentless campaign to overturn DACA and deport these Dreamers back to countries they left as infants, toddlers, and children\u2014countries they may not even remember. Now this program is hanging by a thread in the courts, due to legal challenges from Republican state attorneys general. And many Dreamers, even those who have protections under DACA, have been caught up in deportation raids by the Trump Administration,\u201d Durbin said.\n\nDurbin then shared the story of Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, a college student with a merit scholarship who was deported without due process two weeks ago. Her story is the 150th story of a Dreamer that Durbin has highlighted on the Senate floor.\n\nAny was brought to the United States from Honduras when she was only eight years old. Any worked hard in high school and was an honors student. In her free time, she volunteered as an algebra tutor. Her hard work ultimately paid off, and this year, she received a merit scholarship to study at Babson College in Massachusetts.\n\nLike a lot of college students, she planned to visit her family during the Thanksgiving holiday. Her dad\u2019s employer paid for her travel home to Texas, hoping that she could surprise her dad at work. But when Ms. Lopez Belloza arrived at Boston Logan Airport, she was told there was a problem with her ticket. When she went to customer service, she was surrounded by federal agents and shackled. The next day, a Federal District Court Judge issued an order blocking her transfer or deportation for 72 hours. Despite this court order, the Trump Administration quickly deported her to Honduras, a country she had not been to since she was a little girl. She had nothing but the few belongings she had brought with her for the Thanksgiving holiday at home in Texas with her family.\n\n\u201cYou remember the President\u2019s campaign and rallies and how often he stood before cheering crowds and said it\u2019s time to stop the rapists, murderers, terrorists, and criminally insane from flowing into this nation? The \u2018worst of the worst,\u2019 he repeated over and over again. Does this young lady look like the \u2018worst of the worst\u2019? The answer is clearly no,\u201d Durbin said. \u201cMs. Lopez Belloza is one of countless Dreamers who have great potential to make this a better country. They\u2019re not asking for a free ride. They are hardworking and determined\u2026 It\u2019s that kind of determination, talent, and skill that should be part of this country\u2019s future. She\u2019s going to be someday, I\u2019m sure, a leader in America, a small business owner, a teacher, [or] a doctor.\u201d\n\nDurbin concluded, \u201cThe time to pass the Dream Act is now. That is why I\u2019m proud to announce I\u2019ll be reintroducing the Dream Act this week on a bipartisan basis, with my good friend and colleague Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska. While I\u2019ve introduced the Dream Act in every Congress since 2001, this one is different. This is my last year in the Senate. This is my last opportunity as a Senator to make it the law. Over the years, I\u2019ve met hundreds of amazing Dreamers who are American in every sense of the world, except on paper. To those Dreamers, I promise to do everything in my power to fight for you and your future every day I\u2019m here. As I said to you many times, I\u2019m not giving up on you. Don\u2019t give up on me. To Senator Murkowski, thank you. It took courage to cosponsor this bill, and I will never forget it. Can we get to work on a bipartisan basis and agree that if we\u2019re going to keep safe borders, we also want to make sure the right immigrants are here for our future? Any is one of those people. Without due process, she was sent back to Honduras. Her fate is still uncertain, despite a court order. But there are hundreds of thousands like her that, with enough determination, hard work, and opportunity, can make America a greater nation. She is my 150th Dreamer. I hope she\u2019s part of America for years to come.\u201d\n\nVideo of Durbin\u2019s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.\n\nAudio of Durbin\u2019s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.\n\nFootage of Durbin\u2019s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.\n\n-30-", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-announces-his-final-introduction-of-the-dream-act-and-shares-150th-dreamer-story-on-the-senate-floor"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.946178963407874, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}