durbin: well, there's a certain amount of turmoil here.nd it has to do with the fact that we have four major pieces of legislation that are hanging ov us on capitol hill, first and foremost, to keep the government open. i think that's going to happen tomorrow. there will be some constructive votes in the senate. and i think we're going to get it done. the second one, of course, is the debt ceiling. and that has an october, mid-october deadline to it. so we have a little time. but i certainly hope we get beyond this default strategy of senator mcconnell, holding up this important measure that directly impacts the american economy. then we have the bipartisan infrastructure bill, which passed handily in the senate, which sits in the house waiting for the ultimate outcome on the reconciliation bill, so that nancy pelosi can put together a coalition of all democrats to pass both. what's holding up the reconciliation bill? two senators, and you have identified them in your story already. i don't know which is closer, not in the latest negotiati

chair durbin: thank you. i will go off and vote. senator whitehouse will preside and i believe senator cornyn is next. senator cornyn: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. chairman, i would think if we're going to single out individual states and individual cities that we can anticipate the future hearing on why the city of chicago has the highest murder rates -- among the highest murder rates in the designation. i really think it's inappropriate for the federal government, for the senate judicial committee committee to try to single out -- senate judiciary committee to single out states. this is part of a concerted effort, really, a shameful broadside on the part of our democratic colleagues to attack judicial independence. if there's one thing that distinguishes the united states of america from other countries, it's the independent judiciary, but when politicians decide to attack judges and courts, it's an unfair fight. because the judges can't fight back. they're not going to go public, engage in a public debate

durbin-- dr. durbin, why not? we're in the neighborhood. [laughter] >> senator durbin, as you noted that he would be the first to hold this position as a physician. as a commissioner of the western bureau of public health, dr. gupta saw firsthand the devastation that the opioid epidemic has unleashed, to tackle the epidemic. his work leading efforts to combat drug epidemic in a state with one of the worst overdose states, rates in the nation, we lost 1377 west virginians to fatal drug overdoses just last year, one year, it makes him well-prepared to lead similar efforts on a national scale. i don't think a better person who has upfront on the line, onto front lines fighting this epidemic would ever be more prepared than dr. gupta. we've lost 93,331 americans in the last year alone. in 2017, he was even named west virginian of the year as a result of these efforts that he's been fighting. so he's dedicated public servant. he has served west virginians admirably throughout his time as a health commissioner. i'm proud to introduce him along wi

here is dick durbin, he asked the gymnasts what they would

[laughter] senator durbin.u noted he would be the first to hold this position as a physician from the commissioner of public health he saw firsthand a demonstration the opioid epidemic has unleashed on communities and efforts to tackle the drug epidemic is efforts to combat the drug epidemic in a state with one of the worst overdose states or rates in the nation we lost 1377 west virginia inns to fatal drug-related overdoses last year. one year. makes him all prepared to lead efforts on a national scale i don't think a better person who has been upfront on the front line fighting this epidemic could ever be better arprepared than dr. gupta. we lost 93000, 331 americans in the last year alone and he was evening west virginia and of the year as a result of the efforts he has p been fighting. he isim a dedicated public servant and has served west virginia admirably throughout his time as a healthnt commissioner. i am proud to introduce him along with my colleague who strongly support his nomination to be director

. >> chair durbin, ranking member grassley and distinguished members of the judiciary committee, thank you for inviting me to speak to you today. i want to thank you for your commitments to holding those accountable for athlete safety. i was named as gymnast two in the office of inspector general's report and previously identified as athlete a. by usa gymnastics. i want you to know this didn't happen to gymnast two or agent lee a. it happened to me, maggie nichols. since i was a child i had a dream of competing for my country in the world championships and olympic games. i was an elite level gymnast by the age of 13. by the time i was 14, i made the national team. i traveled internationally for four years attending competitions and in 2015 at the world championships representing our country where i won a gold medal. my olympic dreams ended in the summer of 2015 when my coach and i reported larry nassar' abuse to usag leadership. i went on to compete at the university of oklahoma where i was named first team all american in the all-around in all four events and was an eight-time nationa

durbin: madam president, i rise to speak to 9/11 and the 20th anniversary. but before that, a i would like to address some of the remarks made by the majority leader -- the minority leader, the republican leader in the senate, senator mcconnell, just a few moments ago. he discussed in context of the biden presidency what he called a reckless decision to retreat from afghanistan, with an arbitrary deadline, he went on to say. what the senator failed to include was the efforts made last year before joe biden was elected president by the previous president, republican donald trump, through his secretary of state pompeo in direct negotiation with the taliban to establish the deadlines that we are living by -- have lived by and the evacuation of afghanistan. the idea didn't come with the new president, joe biden. the idea started under the previous republican president, donald trump, who sent our secretary of state to directly negotiate with the taliban leaders. one of the things that they negotiated, incidentally -- i want to make a record of to -- was the relea

durbin: without objection. sen. grassley: the second one would be unrelated to this, but it deals with the unresponsiveness of director wray in regard to -- so i hope the committee will listen to this as well. i have asked director wray several times to meet with me relating to a very troubling briefing i received in august 2020 from the fbi and which was later weaponized against mine and senator johnson's oversight. director wray and his staff have ignored my request to meet, repeating the pattern in the nassar case, nonresponsiveness, so without objection, i would like to introduce into the record today an email thread emblematic of the fbi's nonresponsiveness, showing the lengths i went to to get a meeting with director ray. -- director wray. the inspector's report shows that jay abbott at fbi was allowed to retire in 2018 and evaded prosecution even though this report describes significant misconduct by ham and an agent under his supervision. i ask the attorney general to reconsider his decision to not file char

. >> and senator dick durbin is, i think, at the end of his patience. let's listen to what he said. >> now it's time i would say for both senators, make your mark and close the deal. what is it that you want? what is your final goal? time to start speaking directly to it. their point of view is different from mine, but it's been respected, it's been negotiated, and now it's time to close the deal. >> senator durbin does not know what they want. >> it's remarkable. he's the number two person. he's so accommodating of senators. he's not one to criticize his colleagues. and he's trying to be inspiring. he's saying, look, we can actually do something amazing. this is why you come to washington to serve. we can actually help working class americans, make sure they have child care, make sure they don't have to go into debt if they go to community college. seniors can see a dentist, get a hearing aid. we can tackle climate for the first time. the federal government can do something about climate. and we're so close. and senator durbin, i think he's appealing t

but clearly, some nervousness here at the white house. >> senator durbin made what i think is a very quotable and accurate statement when he said that democrats are just a heartbeat away from losing the senate majority. he's not kidding. if democrats, who now control the house, the senate, the white house can't get this signature legislation through, what they ran on, what the president ran, what happens then? is there any sense of urgency about 2022, 2024's impact in finally coming together and doing something? >> the things that dick durbin and everyone else knows is history is not on the side of democrats here. we know that at least one of the chambers, possibly the senate, probably the house are going to flip. and that's something especially with their very, very slim majority that they already have been playing with, which is why we have all these issues. i think something that's been said to me by progressive activists out on the ground is that they need something to be done. if you want them to say get the vote out, get people to go back and vote in record numbers in the midte

we heard dick durbin say, if you knew a child had been kidnapped, you would act. you'd act immediately. you would not delay for 14 months interviewing some of these women. incredible comparison that he made. >> harris: if you knew it was happening over and over again, that's an epidemic. you didn't treat this like that. >> the pattern is so horrifying to us. that's what these young women said today. they also said my abuse was enough. mckayla maroney said it specifically. if they weren't trying to protect me, who were they trying to protect? why was one credible allegation of abuse not enough? these women were traumatized over and over. >> harris: we've got about a minute before we wrap. there was a theme today among lawmakers' questions for wray and horowitz. why are people then, even though they left, why was 2018 a year that you let one of the perpetrators retire? >> that's right. that's why these women are demanding accountability from all of these organizations. >> harris: usa gymnastics, olympics, paralympics. >> wray said we are limited in the disciplinary

senator durbin, does not know what they want. as remarkable he's the number two person, he is so accommodating of senators. he is not want to criticize his colleagues, and he's actually trying to be inspiring. he is saying look, we can actually do something amazing. this is why you come to washington to serve. we can actually help working class americans. we can make sure they have childcare. we can make sure that people don't have to go into debt. if they go to community college, we can make sure that people can actually see a denton's. that they can actually get a hearing aid. we can actually tackle climate for the first time, the federal government can do something about climate. and we are so close. and senator durbin i think is appealing to senator manchin, and senator sinema, saying come on let's do something for the country for our president. i hope they will listen. >> what is your sense of where the speaker is on what her next movies? >> the speaker would love for us to have an agreement, and have a vote. and she is keep

we know the gymnasts are in the room now as senator durbin is beginning that opening statement. and senate judiciary handles oversight of the fbi. that's why this committee is working on this. you can see i think that's mckayla maroney, that is, sitting there in the middle, lined up, as they get ready to deliver their opening statements. there they are. the four gymnasts testifying today including simone biles. put into perspective for us the significance of what we're about to see. this is titled dereliction of duty. which is the criticism from some coroners about the mishandling of the way the fbi dealt with this. and important to note this fbi investigate took place before chris ray became director. so help us put this into context. >> it's been six years since usa gymnastics received the allegations of sexual misconduct against larry nassar. it has been five years since my colleagues and i at the indianapolis star had published the first allegations against him before the public. and so there has been a lot of frustration for the survivors and i'm sure you'll hear some of th

senator dick durbin announces as it relates to the controversial, new texas abortion law there will being at our notes coming in, there will be a hearing in the judiciary committee about this. i bring in sahil kapur on capitol hill. the senator is describing the law as a devastating blow to americans' constitutional rights. let me ask you this. is this a first step to something more or a step to satisfy those on the left who are really demanding, and i talked to some of the abortion rights advocates who say we want congress to do something to step up here. >> a first step to examining what senator durbin the chairman calls the supreme court's abuse of the shadow docket, after the court has used that process to deliver meaningful consequential decisions on the texas abortion law and president biden's eviction moratorium and the remain in mexico policy. growing concern among figures like durbin and other experts the supreme court is avoiding hearing oral arguments and going through the arguments for and against big issues, so yes, the supreme court is an independent branch of government

i'll ask the number two senate democrat, dick durbin, if his party can avert political and economic disasters. >> also tonight, the nation's top general undergoes another grilling up on capitol hill. once again, contradicting president biden on afghanistan and testifying about the final days of the trump presidency. general mark milley. also revealing he doesn't regret talking to the journalist bob woodward. the "peril" author standing by live. >> we're standing by also on a judge's ruling on whether to end britney spears' conservatorship after the pop star spent 13 years under the control of her father. we want to welcome our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >> this is cnn breaking news. >> we begin with breaking news. top house and senate democrats making an 11th hour trip to the white house, as deepening divisions are pushing their party, congress, and the nation to the brink of crisis. ryan nobles is standing by up on capitol hill where the clock is ticking toward a critical vote and a potential government shutdown.

you will also hear from majority whip durbin of illinois and alabama republican senator on the end of u.s. military action and the 20th anniversary of the september 11th terrorist attacks. >> i want to welcome back my colleagues from the august period as we return to washington as everyone knows the senate has a busy schedule ahead of it. to be the under secretary of education. tomorrow we will move the nominations to be district judge of the western district of washington and to serve for the district of massachusetts and the senate will also begin consideration of veronica rosman to be the circuit judge for the tenth circuit. on the legislative front the senate will pick up exactly where we left offwh last month. we will continue our fight to preserve the voting rights for millions of americans. and of course wenu will continue working to pass president president bidenspilled back a ad said the country on a path to prosperity for decades to come. at the end of the last work period, the senate took two important steps to achieving that goal. second, senate democratso came together fo

so senator durbin is right.re is a plan b and if necessary a plan c or what not but the fundamental goals stay the same. out of respect to the millions of immigrants that have been living in the united states for years and years and years. rachel, as you know adult undocumented immigrants have been in the united states on average for 18 years of working, paying taxes, buying homes, raising families, contributing to the success of our country. they deserve to live without fear of deportation. and so plan b, plan c, whatever it takes, we're going to keep fighting until we get to yes and provide those protections and security for as many people as possible as quickly as possible. >> when you say you're going to keep fighting until you get to yes, i think i'm trying to understand. a lot of people are trying to understand or set reasonable expectations for how this is going to go. i want to ask you about something that reportedly happened today involving senator menendez. today senator menendez at an immigrants right

senator durbin, welcome back to the "newshour".rd the latest from your completely senator manchin saying he's not convinced the money needs to be spent, and then a statement from house progressive leader saying after senator manchin's statement she thinks more people will vote against the infrastructure bill tomorrow. is there any chance this passes tomorrow? >> well, there's a certain amount of turmoil here and it has to do with the fact we have four major pieces of legislation hanging over us in capitol hill. first and foremost to keep the government open, i think that will happen tomorrow. there will be constructive votes in the senate and i think we'll get it done. the debt ceiling has a mid october deadline to it. so we have a little time but i hope we get behind this default strategy of senator mcconnell holding this up that impacts the american economy. the bipartisan infrastructure bill passed handily in the senate which sits in the house waiting for the outcome on the reconciliation bill so nay pelosi can put together a co

i have been working closely with my colleagues in the senate, including judiciary chairman durbin, senators padilla, menendez, lujan, cortez masto, and we will continue our fight to find the best option available to provide immigrants with the chance at one day obtaining lawful residence here in america. the last year and a half, madam president, have shown how vital our immigrants have been to keeping our economy going during a time of crisis. so many risked their lives on the front line of this pandemic but remain excluded from the very same benefits that have kept millions of others secure during these hard times. we're short of workers from one end of america to the other. one of the reasons, the trump administration dramatically cut back on immigrants in this country. we need them. we need them in our labor force. we need them to continue american vitality. we need them because they are part of the american dream. it's estimated in my city by some that one-third of the health care workers at the height of covid who risked their lives for us were immigrants. having a strong law that hel

durbin: i'd like to talk about the state of the pandemic. i'm disappointed by the parliamentarian decision. there are too many lives at stake. over the past 18 months thousands of daca recipients and other immigrants have saved american lives as doctors, intensive care nurses, respiratory therapists. they risk their lives. the least we can do is give them a path to legal status in america. senate democrats will have a proposal. we know how essential immigrants are to america and to our economic future. during the pandemic undocumented immigrants have not only been saving lives in our nation's hospitals, they've been toiling in extreme heat on farms across the country to secure the food that we eat every day in america. they've defended our national security as members of the military. they've been working as home health aides, helping care for our parents and family members with disabilities and they've been caring for our children as teachers and child care workers. they are americans in every way except for their official legal status. it'

and i don't know whether i can say it any stronger than if you heard senator durbin's remarks immediately after these women testified. he said something along the lines that he's never heard such strong testimony to back up, one, the need for maybe further legislation, further hearings, but also the inadequacy of the enforcement of existing laws. or even if it doesn't involve the enforcement of existing laws, it involves the fbi derelict in what they were doing. so whether it's the lack of what xavier branch agencies didn't do, or whether we need more legislation, is a question that is totally backed up by the testimony of these women, and particularly, their speaking out for hundreds of other people that were affected the same way they were affected. we've been somewhat successful in passing some legislation, but this testimony indicates that we need to do a lot more, and i think we have worked in a bipartisan way in the first instances, and will continue to work in a bipartisan way otherwise. thank you very much for your help, and thank you all for coming. sen. blumenthal: now, do you w

durbin: mr. president, i have six requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. with the approval of the majority and minority leaders. the presiding officer: duly noted. mr. durbin: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, earlier today, as we just heard from my colleague in texas, the judiciary committee held a hearing on the abortion ban that took effect in the state of texas earlier this month. i hope every american who tuned into this listened very closely, very closely because here is what we heard. my republican colleagues on the committee literally made no effort to defend the texas abortion law, the texas abortion ban. s.b. 8 it's known as in texas. not a single effort to defend it on its merits. they made no effort to engage on the issue of the shadow docket process through which the supreme court allowed this bill to become law, and they made no effort to argue that women's constitutional rights should be protected. what we witnessed today during today's hearing

take a listen to what senator dick durbin said last night on our air. this is what he said on the situation room voicing his frustration toward these two members. >> i think we've shown a lot of respect to our colleagues who obviously have a different point of view when it comes to reconciliation. there's been meaningful negotiation that's gone on for weeks. the president has been involved personally. i've never seen a president engage this way since barack obama's days with the affordable care act. so we're all in, all aboard. now it's time i would say for both senators, make your mark and close the deal. what is it that you want? what is your final goal? it's time to stop talking around it and speak directly to it. everything is tied to it, the future bipartisan infrastructure bill is tied to it. the future of the debt ceiling is tied to it. it is time for us to make a decision and do our job. i would say to both of them, their point of view is different than mine, but it's been respected. it's been negotiated, and now it's time to close the deal. >>

obviously, like senator durbin, i've been on this committee for a long time. i cannot think of anything so moving. we're going to hear senators and others talk about accountability and justice today, but what was genuine accountability look like to you? when do you feel justice will be done for the injustices you suffer? that really should be the question we have today. i'd like to hear from all of you on that. when you feel justice will be done and what does genuine accountability look like? >> you want to try that one? >> yeah, sure. >> first going back to i probably sound like a broken record but i'm going to try hopefully today will be the one that this time i say it, it actually happens. for me accountability looks like, first of all, i think that obviously this should have never happened. one time being abused is too many. one child being abused is too many. i think a complete and full independent investigation of fbi, usag olympics and the united states olympic and paralympic committee. i also think there needs to be, when we think about a new usa gymna

i thank senator klobuchar and senator lee. >> thank you very much, chairman durbin. i wanted to make clear that this hearing is one of a series of hearings senator lee and i are conducting our bipartisan review of america's competition issues. i thank my staff as well as senator lee and his staff for helping to plan the hearing. today we are going to be talking about how competition is affected and threatened by the use of big data. big data is at the core of our modern economy as senator durbin so well pointed out powering targeted advertising and driving artificial intelligence to select what products and services we are shown online and increasingly offline as well. in this hearing we'll explore the companies that control the data, the state of competition and barriers to entry, and the effects of big data on consumers, choices, and privacy. now, i'd like to be clear about what we mean when we say big data. technology companies such as google, facebook, and amazon collect an enormous amount of information as senator durbin pointed out about our daily activities in

let's bring in now democratic majority whip senator dick durbin of illinois.pocrisy. we've been talking about it this morning and last week. that said, they will not give you a vote, they wouldn't even give you a vote to investigate an insurrection, so are democrats going to have to do this on their own? >> i hope not, because at this point the republicans are threatening a filibuster, joe, you know what that's all about, 60-vote requirement to move forward. it amazes me they would use this procedural weapon, if you will, to really jeopardize the economy of this country and its recovery period through this pandemic. remember last year, joe, when all of the bills under the trump administration before the pandemic were coming around, democrats joining republicans voting for those efforts, bill after bill after bill. bipartisan effort. the day after donald trump absconded himself from the capitol, key decision making, american rescue plan and this effort to pass the debt ceiling so we can continue to try to rebuild our economy. >> and using the filibuster, they s

senator durbin opposed the ruling. senator cornyn supported it. i

so how aren't god's green golden earth of this all happen question rick illinois senator dick durbintopher wray, that very question, watch. >> what am i missing here? this is like a child kidnapping case. this man is on the loose and molesting children. it appears is being lost in the paperwork of the agency. >> i do not have a good explanation for you. it is utterly jarring to me. that is why that individual has been fired. kennedy: so will these athletes ever get justice? and whose head should request or at the party panel is back, ned ryun, dave smith and leslie marshall. ned, this is really hard to watch. this is very emotional testimony. and i have to tell you, my girls were usga athletes for six years. they were competitive and i saw that culture firsthand. i cannot believe those fbi agents knew that he was molesting women and he went on to create new victims because of their interactions. that is criminal. >> well, canada have thought this for a while now for the fbi is irreparably corrupt. the one standing was michaela maroney. i told them in 2015 all this they settle for 17

walking out for his covid booster shot it comes as you have some democrats in his own party, senator durbin, for example, saying at the end of the day the president needs to step up and say this is what we've got to do everybody has to pitch in. we know the white house says he was working the phones from camp david this weekend what's the sell on his end >> well, the white house officials have said they see the president as the honest broker her. they acknowledge there is distrust on both sides of the democratic party and distrust from the republican party. they think the president can step in here and help bridge the divides. we have not seen a really hands on approach from the president up until this point, though. i think part of that has been strategic. they have wanted to leave it to pelosi and schumer >> shannon, here he comes. we're going to listen in to president biden about to get his booster shot >> in the old days me either. anyway, like i did in my first and second covid-19 vaccination shot, about to get my booster shot and do it publicly. that's because the food and drug admini

miss nichols. >> chair durbin, ranking member grassley and distinguished members of the judiciary committeeday. i want to thank you for your commitments to holding those

today, the second ranking democrat in the senate, senator dick durbin, real iterated that pledge, heatement with california senator alex padilla, saying, quote -- senator durbin also told nbc news, so heel cup, or that senate democrats have a plan the, plan c, and plenty and including the immigration package in the reconciliation bill. i have a lot of questions, a lot of people do. what is plan b, what is plan c, and what is plan d? what are these proposals going to look like? if democrats are really not going to take no for an answer, if they go through with this plan b proposal, and they try all the other plans and they don't go through, could this reach a point where democrats decide that they are going to overruled the parliamentarian, or replace the parliamentarian? both of which have happened before. because they care enough about this issue that they are going to get this passed one way or another. joining us now is senator alex video of california, he is a member of the budget committee he is the chair of the judiciary subcommittee of four to safety. he's one of the key figur

principal durbin, a perfect character for patton oswalt, but i also wanted to look back, some reallyoto, you are the most "d&d" person in this photo. >> the -- i am holding the original hardback players' manual i look like i've just been given aerosmith tickets. i'm so happy in that photo [ laughter ] i don't think, wait -- i don't think i've ever been that happy >> seth: yeah. >> yeah, i could not be more nerded out i got the weird little glasses, and oh, my god - >> seth: everything about it, like - yeah, i feel -- you feel like genuinely so happy that they were like, "you guys want to get a picture? and you were like, "yeah i want people to know this." >> of the whole group, you could tell that i was one that ran over and went "hang on," and i grabbed my players' manual to like hold it up, like, "i got it!" >> seth: now, i didn't know this, but you would argue, 'cause this is you doing something in college this is an athletic activity but you see this as a natural through line connected to "d&d." >> yes, i did -- >> seth: tell us what you're doing here >> i was on the fencing team

illinois senator durbin and kansas republican jerry moran say the fbi must be held accountable. agree. just been it was like this one do not arise out of nowhere. >> they are enabled by systematic organizational failures allowing. >> for there to be more than one more than dozens. >> fbi director christopher wray says the specific agent responsible for the failure was fired and another retired it never should have happened. he says the fbi is now adopting new policies. my entire senior leadership team are going to make sure everybody at the fbi remembers what happened here. >> in heartbreaking detail. >> lawmakers also has the department of justice to testify. but they declined that invitation. now after today's hearing lawmakers join survivors at a press conference. the pushing for more hearings and legislative action. now in washington, raquel martin, back to you. thank you for cal. >> turning now to our coronavirus coverage at the white house today. president biden held a meeting with ceos and business leaders to discuss covid related mandates in the workforce. the attendees

illinois senator durbin and kansas republican jerry moran say the fbi must be held accountable. agree. just been it was like this one do not arise out of nowhere. >> they are enabled by systematic organizational failures allowing. >> for there to be more than one more than dozens. >> fbi director christopher wray says the specific agent responsible for the failure was fired and another retired it never should have happened. he says the fbi is now adopting new policies. my entire senior leadership team are going to make sure everybody at the fbi remembers what happened here. >> in heartbreaking detail. >> the lawmakers that they also want to hear from the department of justice to hear their role in this matter when it comes to prosecuting the fbi agents responsible for inaction. now, after today's hearing, we know that lawmakers held a press conference alongside survivors. they're talking about legislative action and more hearings for now in washington. raquel martin, back to you. all right, raquel, thank you for that report. in the south bay. campbell man was honored today by th

just like chairman durbin has asked. finally, i want to mention i'm working on legislation to close the loophole in the sex tourism statute that the inspector general flagged in his report. the gap in the law allowed larry nasser to evade federal prosecution for assaulting children while traveling abroad. and that can never happen again. i look forward to working with the inspector general, members of this committee, in making this necessary change in the law. thank you. >> thank you and we look forward to working with you on a bipartisan basis. >> thank you, i welcome the opportunity to say a few words about this appalling abuse of young athletes and the failures of the failures of the fbi to protect them. it was more than five years ago that we heard about the horrific abuse perpetrated by larry nassar and began working to reform how and assure athletic organizations handle sexual abuse allegations. i have met several times with some of our witnesses. i believe two are here today. and other athletes who have been harme

. >> thank you chairman durbin for a very strong and appropriate statement that you just made. thank you for holding this hearing. thank you for involving me and others in this hearing as well. as the former chairman of this committee, i convened a hearing in 2017 on the importance of protecting young athletes against abuse. it took place before larry nasser, the now disgraced teen test team doctor was convicted. our committee heard them from other gymnasts about a culture in competitive sports that made it difficult for many girls to come forward and report their sexual abuse. that hearing convinced me of the need to champion legislation on which i work closely with senator feinstein, then ranking member, in 2017. the enactment means that copious instructors and others who work with young athletes now are mandatory reporters of child exploitation or abuse. oversight of the fbi is one of eric committees important duties, i also repeatedly pressed the fbi for more information on its handling of the nasser investigation from 2017 to the present. the fbi personnel ignored my steps