Politics

‘I Wouldn’t Consider Even Walking Through The Door’: Sen. Dick Durbin Blasts CPAC Attendees As Conspiracy Theorists

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Brandon Gillespie Media Reporter
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Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin criticized the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and its attendees Monday, saying they’re “a bunch of people with a theory and a conspiracy for every issue facing America” and that he “wouldn’t consider even walking through the door” of the conference.

Durbin appeared on CNN’s “New Day” and discussed with host John Berman which Republicans will be speaking at CPAC and how one of the major topics at the conference will be election fraud.

Berman began by noting that former President Donald Trump, as well as various Republican senators, will be in attendance. He also mentioned that the agenda for part of the conference will focus on protecting elections, the “refusal” by judges and media to look at “evidence” of election fraud, as well as “the left’s” involvement in the alleged fraud.

A USA Today/Suffolk University poll conducted in December found that 78% of Republicans believe there was fraud in the 2020 election and that Joe Biden was illegitimately elected president.

In the months following the election, Trump continuously alleged that he only lost because of widespread fraud. This culminated in the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol by thousands of his supporters seeking to stop Congress from certifying the Electoral College results. (RELATED: ‘Drag All Of These People Into Prison’: Joe Scarborough Wants 20-Year Sentence For Everyone Who Got Inside Capitol)

“My question is, if you have a major political organization, that clearly has the support of a big part of the Republican Party, holding a conference like this … How do you deal with that on Capitol Hill?” Berman asked.

Durbin responded, mentioning that the Senate investigation into the attack on the Capitol building is being done with a bipartisan approach. He noted that it’s an “important issue” and will help “get down to the question” of finding out what is going on with “domestic terrorism” in the U.S. “We’re not going to brush this under the rug,” he added.

“Some of these groups, which the president encouraged, ended up coming up here and literally killing a Capitol Hill police officer and harming 140 other law enforcement officers,” Durbin continued. “This sort of thing is unacceptable. And, the people who are headed down to this conference in Florida, be my guest. I wouldn’t consider even walking through the door. It’s a bunch of people with a theory and a conspiracy for every issue facing America.”