Durbin honors U.S. Rep. Bustos for tenure in Congress

U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin recently delivered a speech on the Senate floor honoring Congresswoman Cheri Bustos’ work in the U.S. House of Representatives ahead of her retirement at the end of the 117th Congress.

In his remarks, Durbin highlighted Bustos’ commitment to her constituents.

“Since Cheri was first elected in 2012, she has lived, breathed, and fought for every family in the 17th District. From providing the best constituent service in the House of Representatives, securing more funding for her District than any other Democrat in the House, Cheri quickly set herself apart as one of the bright leaders in our state’s history,” Durbin said.

Durbin spoke fondly of Bustos’ determination that helped her leap from city council to Congress.

“Cheri won her first election in 2007 for a seat on the East Moline City Council…A few years later, she called me and said, ‘I’m moving on up. I want to run for Congress.’ I’ll admit, my wife and I were surprised. Making the leap from city council to Congress is not for the faint of heart, but Cheri was an obvious natural,” Durbin continued. “It was a heartfelt campaign that started off on a shoestring. And that November, Cheri won a tough district by eight points.”

Durbin went on to describe the time and effort Bustos dedicated to understanding the needs and concerns of her constituents.

“During that first term, Cheri launched ‘Cheri-on-Shift,’ her practice of working alongside constituents at their jobs. In Cheri’s words, the ‘Cheri-on-Shift’ experiment gives her ‘a feel for what people do for a living, how they support their families, their struggles, why they take pride in their jobs.’ Over the past decade, Cheri has served drinks at the Golden Hen Café in Galena, planted soybeans with a farmer in Galesburg, and taken care of senior citizens at the Lifescape facility in Rockford,” said Durbin. “With every ‘Cheri-on-Shift,’ she would ask her constituents, ‘What do you need from me in Washington?”

Bustos also fought to ensure that survivors of sexual assault received justice, Durbin said.

“One of her final acts in Congress is one that will have impact across America for decades to come. She passed a law to end forced arbitration for sexual assault survivors. After she steered that bill through the House, I had the honor working on it successfully as Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. This law will ensure that every survivor can have their day in court. It wouldn’t have happened without Cheri Bustos,” he said.

Durbin concluded his remarks by wishing his colleague a fulfilling retirement.

“Loretta and I are amazed, but not one bit surprised, to see how far you have come. We’ve trusted you for a long time, when you were our babysitter for our kids, a graduate of the Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership Training Academy, to one of the most accomplished legislators and constituent advocates in the House of Representatives,” Durbin said.