A Senate hearing went tense and quiet after an angry Illinois Angel Father, Joe Abraham, directly confronted Sen. Dick Durbin (D-L) over the death of his daughter at the hands of a drunk-driving illegal alien, a horrific and senseless death that Sen. Durbin never even bothered to acknowledge despite it occurring in the state he represents because of open border policies.
In fact, Mr. Abraham didn’t just call out Sen. Durbin once. He skewered him twice, sounding off both in person and in writing on how the retiring senator hasn’t ever bothered to acknowledge that his party’s policies regarding the southern border and illegal immigration directly led to the death of his daughter.
The awkward incident in the US Senate was precipitated by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who kindly–and astutely, given the politics of the uncomfortable and devastatingly tragic situation–offered his personal condolences to Mr. Abraham. It was that exchange, for which Mr. Abraham thanked Sen. Cruz, that led to the takedown of Sen. Durbin.
Beginning his takedown, Mr. Abraham thanked Sen. Cruz, saying, “I appreciate it.” He added, thanking the others who had the common decency to express their condolences over his daughter’s horrible death at the hands of an illegal alien, “I also appreciate Ranking Member Welch and Mr. Padilla for recognizing that.”
Then, pointing at Sen. Durbin, he laid into him with a vengeance, exposing that the heartless Democrat hadn’t bothered to say a single word of condolence. He said, “What I don’t understand is why my senator of Illinois, Mr. Durbin, [I] haven’t heard two words from him toward me.” He added, “It’s kind of amazing.”
That led to an awkward and tense hush falling over the Senate chamber. Sen. Cruz, eventually chiming in after Sen. Durbin failed even then to offer his condolences, said, “I think it is a fair question to ask.” Mr. Abraham answered by getting in another knock at Sen. Durbin, saying, “Kind of happy he’s calling it quits.”
Watch him here:
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After that tense exchange, Mr. Abraham took to X to go nuclear about the horrible situation again. He began, “@SenatorDurbin, my daughter died in a system shaped by policies you continue to defend. You chose sanctuary policies that give special privileges to those here illegally, while law-abiding Illinois citizens like my family are left unprotected. That’s not compassion. That’s a failure of leadership.”
Continuing, he further hammered the senator, saying, “Your north star isn’t public safety, it’s ideology. And it’s an ideology with no guardrails, where political priorities come before the lives of the people you were elected to serve. You had the chance to show basic humanity, to acknowledge Katie’s life and death, as other senators in your own party did. Instead, silence. Not a call, not a statement, not even basic human acknowledgment.”
Concluding, he wrote, “Silence in the face of tragedy isn’t neutrality. It’s indifference. Illinois families deserve better than leaders who look away when the consequences don’t fit their narrative. You’re retiring, but for many of us, that comes 30 years too late. And whoever you choose to endorse should be rejected just as quickly, because Illinois cannot afford more of the same.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video