In the wake of longtime Illinois Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin announcing his retirement Wednesday, politicians are looking back on the 80-year-old Senate minority whip’s tenure and also looking ahead to who will replace him.
“In my heart, I know it’s time to pass the torch. So, I am announcing today that I will not be seeking reelection at the end of my term,” Durbin said.
Durbin, who has served as a senator from Illinois since 1997, and a member of the House for 14 years before that, has long been a hard-nosed Democrat fighter.
The five-term senator steered his caucus on decisions such as blocking a COVID-19 relief package in the middle of the 2020 election season, and killing a bill that would have prohibited transgender athletes in federally funded school athletic programs.
A recent example of compromise, however, was his vote for a stopgap funding bill in…
