Press Releases
As Housing Costs Continue to Soar, Duckworth Convenes Metro East Housing Authorities to Discuss Solutions
[ALTON, IL] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today met with local housing authorities, municipal leaders and service providers to discuss the ongoing housing affordability crisis and how to expand stable, affordable housing opportunities. As the cost of housing continues to consistently faster than the rate of wages, Duckworth underscored the urgent need to address issues preventing homes from being built and ensuring the homes we do build meet the needs of Veterans, the disability … Continue Reading
February 06, 2026
Amid Trump’s Attempts to Block Billions in Funding for Child Care, Duckworth Meets with Metro East Care Providers
[EDWARDSVILLE, IL] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today met with Metro East child care providers and families to learn more about how Donald Trump’s attempt to block $1 billion in funding for Illinois would gravely impact child care in the region, as well as how previous Trump Administration cuts have already affected services. Duckworth met with child care provider leaders from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Early Childhood Center, Brightpoint, Michelle’s Place Cahokia … Continue Reading
February 06, 2026
Duckworth Calls Out DHS Secretary Noem for Intimidating, Preventing Oversight Watchdog from Doing its Job as DHS Agents Kill Americans in the Street
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) is calling out U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem for making thinly veiled threats to invoke a never-used authority that is effectively a kill switch to prevent or end any DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigation. Duckworth expressed alarm that Noem’s implied threats are intimidating this government watchdog into inaction, given the DHS OIG’s failure to conduct independent investigations into the … Continue Reading
February 06, 2026
In Madison County, Duckworth Underscores Importance of Water Infrastructure Funding
[EAST ALTON, IL] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today hosted local, state and regional leaders to discuss ongoing water infrastructure challenges throughout Madison County. As PFAS contamination in drinking water supply has become more prevalent throughout the county, compounded with aging water infrastructure, Duckworth and leaders discussed the need for more funding for the region, an issue Duckworth has been a leader on. Photos from today’s meeting are available on the Senator’s … Continue Reading
February 05, 2026
Duckworth Joins Cantwell, Markey in Call for Accountability After Bedford’s Violation of Ethics Agreement May Yield the Sitting FAA Chief Millions
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation (CST) and Ranking Member of the CST Aviation Subcommittee—Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Edward Markey (D-MA) called on the Department of Transportation (DOT) General Counsel Gregory Zerzan for information and accountability regarding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford’s refusal to comply with his ethics agreement and divest his … Continue Reading
February 04, 2026
Duckworth Demands Trump Administration Remove ICE Investigators from Alex Pretti Shooting Investigation
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - With the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) now leading the investigation into the deadly shooting of Alex Pretti, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) is demanding U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and FBI Director Kash Patel to immediately remove any Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents from the investigation. Duckworth’s letter follows the news that HSI agents were originally put in … Continue Reading
February 04, 2026
Duckworth Pushes Tesla and Waymo to Ensure Autonomous Vehicles Are Safe and Accessible for All Americans
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - As our nation’s road fatalities remain unacceptably high, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today pressed Tesla and Waymo to not only prioritize the safety of all Americans but also to proactively ensure universal accessibility for people with disabilities in their autonomous vehicle (AV) design and deployment. Currently, Tesla offers no wheelchair accessible model and none of its electric vehicles (EVs) have a common conversion platform that would simplify accessibility … Continue Reading
February 03, 2026
Duckworth, Durbin, Foster Introduce New Legislation to Boost Housing Stock Across the Country
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Bill Foster (D-IL-11) today introduced new legislation that would address the housing shortage in the United States, which has priced millions of Americans out of home ownership. To mitigate barriers to home ownership and incentivize builders to focus on constructing resilient and affordable homes, the Advancing Better Options for Dwellings Everywhere (ABODE) Act … Continue Reading
February 03, 2026
Duckworth Meets with Woman Shot Five Times by Trump’s DHS, Marimar Martinez, Underscoring Need for Oversight on DHS
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today met with Marimar Martinez to discuss Martinez’s ongoing legal efforts to force the release the Border Patrol agents’ body camera footage from and text messages regarding her shooting. Martinez—a proud Chicagoan and U.S. citizen—was shot five times by a Border Patrol agent in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood in October and then falsely branded a domestic terrorist by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Martinez today is … Continue Reading
February 02, 2026
Duckworth Joins Schiff, Colleagues in Raising Alarm on EPA’s New Rule Abandoning Federal Water Pollution Protections
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) and 14 of her colleagues in opposing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)’s new Waters of the United States (WOTUS) proposed rule which threatens to undo significant progress made to restore the quality of our nation’s waters. The new rule limits the definition of waters, including removing coverage for waters that are not wet for the duration … Continue Reading
January 30, 2026
Duckworth Pushes to Allow Wrongfully Detained Citizens—and Families of Citizens Wrongfully Killed—by Trump’s Agents to Sue Federal Government for Same Damages GOP Senators Recently Entitled Themselves To
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) introduced an amendment to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations Act today that would empower the families of U.S. citizens who were wrongfully killed by Trump’s lawless agents, as well as each citizen who was wrongfully detained and then released by Trump’s reckless agents, to sue the federal government for at least $500,000. Duckworth’s Citizens Are As Important As Senators amendment is modeled on language Senate … Continue Reading
January 30, 2026
Duckworth, Walkinshaw Implore Trump Administration to Expand IVF Coverage for the Millions of Hardworking Americans Enrolled in FEHB Plans
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative James Walkinshaw (D-VA-11) called on Donald Trump—who has repeatedly failed to deliver on his promise to provide free IVF for all Americans—to prove his self-proclaimed support for IVF by expanding coverage for the millions of hardworking Americans in our federal workforce. In their letter, the lawmakers called on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to require all Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) … Continue Reading
January 30, 2026
Duckworth Statement on Voting Against DHS Funding Extension
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement on today’s vote in the Senate: “Trump’s lawless agents are out of control. The American people are crying out for accountability after watching Border Patrol and ICE terrorize our streets, snatch up and detain kids, rip families apart and even publicly execute two U.S. citizens in broad daylight—with zero consequences. Congress cannot let this reign of terror continue. “It is imperative that we … Continue Reading
January 29, 2026
Duckworth Meets DHS IG and Reiterates Her Demand for Independent Investigations into Trump Agent Killings
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) met with U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General (IG) Joseph Cuffari to discuss the urgent need to conduct an independent investigation into the egregious public execution of Alex Pretti and pattern of brutality from Trump’s lawless agents. The meeting comes after Duckworth repeatedly called on DHS and the Department of Justice IGs to establish a joint task force to investigate these abuses. Shamefully, just … Continue Reading
January 29, 2026
Duckworth Votes Against Department of Homeland Security Funding Bill
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - As our nation continues to see Trump’s lawless federal agents repeatedly use excessive force and kill American citizens, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today voted against the government funding package that included the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill: “Alex Pretti was publicly executed while trying to protect a woman from being assaulted—just two weeks after Trump’s agents had already gunned down another citizen in Minneapolis. The American … Continue Reading
January 29, 2026
Duckworth Presses VA Secretary on Haphazard Restructuring Plan Amidst Trump-Induced Staffing Shortage at the VA
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) pressed U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins on his haphazard plans to restructure the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which comes at a time when the VA is facing a severe staffing shortage as a direct result of the Trump Administration betraying our Veterans and removing 40,000 dedicated civil servants from the agency. During the U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) hearing, … Continue Reading
January 28, 2026
Duckworth, Durbin Slam Half Billion Dollar Cost of Trump’s Domestic Troop Deployments in Chicago and Throughout U.S.
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) reacted to today’s Congressional Budget Office Report on cost estimates for troop deployments to U.S. cities. CBO estimated, that for the last six months of 2025, the domestic deployments cost nearly $496 million—including $21 million for the deployment in Illinois, where troops spent months confined to bases after federal courts found the deployment illegal. Duckworth … Continue Reading
January 28, 2026
Duckworth Rails Against Secretary Rubio for Speaking Out of Both Sides of His Mouth on Venezuela
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Today, U.S. Senator and combat Veteran Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) railed against Secretary of State Marco Rubio for speaking out of both sides of his mouth on whether the United States is at war with Venezuela. During today’s U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) hearing, Duckworth pressed Secretary Rubio on how he can support Donald Trump invoking wartime authorities—like the Alien Enemies Act—while insisting that we are not at war. After Secretary Rubio refused to … Continue Reading
January 28, 2026
Duckworth, Quigley Unveil Bicameral Bill to Launch Federal Grant Program Dedicated to Commuter Rail Bridges
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (D-IL-05) unveiled new legislation to revitalize our nation’s rapidly aging and deteriorating commuter rail bridges while making it easier and safer for Americans who depend on rail transportation to get around. With over 200 Metra bridges in dire need of repair in Chicago, the Building Rail Infrastructure for a Durable & Growing Economy (BRIDGE) Act would establish a first-ever $1.5 billion … Continue Reading
January 25, 2026
Duckworth Seeks to Force Independent Investigations of Trump Agents’ Use of Excessive and Deadly Force Against American Citizens
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - After Trump’s lawless masked agents publicly and remorselessly executed another American citizen in broad daylight yesterday, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) tonight announced that she will seek to force the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) to deploy criminal investigators and other personnel to conduct transparent and independent investigations, in coordination with state law enforcement authorities, into the Trump … Continue Reading