Durbin: 'I stand by every word' of 'shithole' statement

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said Tuesday he stood by "every word" of his statement that President Donald Trump referred to foreign countries as "shithole countries" during a bipartisan meeting on immigration last week.

"I stand by every word I said about what was said and what happened at that meeting," Durbin told reporters on Capitol Hill.


The senate minority whip, during a separate interview with CNN Tuesday, also disputed reports that Trump referred to African nations as "shithouse" countries rather than "shitholes." "I can tell you explicitly that they’re wrong,” Durbin said.

He also dismissed the notion that the distinction made any difference.

“This is the defense? The defense that instead of ‘s-hole’ it was ‘s-house’? That’s the best they can come up with? I mean it really tells a story,” Durbin said.

The Illinois Democrat came under fire from fellow senators and the president after corroborating media reports last Thursday that Trump questioned why the U.S. was admitting people from “shithole countries” or “shitholes" during a meeting on immigration reform at the White House.

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Durbin, one of the lawmakers in attendance, was the first to speak out and support the reports, saying Trump used "hate-filled" and "racist" language "several times" during the summit. But the account has been contested by his Republican colleagues, with two GOP senators denying the president used such language.

"I'm telling you he did not use that word, George, and I'm telling you it's a gross misrepresentation," Sen. David Perdue of Georgia said on ABC News Sunday. He and Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas had issued a statement Friday saying they had no recollection of Trump making the remarks. They have since outright denied the president used the reported wording.

Trump lashed out at Durbin on Monday, saying he "totally misrepresented" what he had said, criticizing "Dicky Durbin" for impeding negotiations on the so called "Dreamers."

"Senator Dicky Durbin totally misrepresented what was said at the DACA meeting. Deals can't be made when there is no trust! Durbin blew DACA and is hurting our military," Trump tweeted.

Durbin on Tuesday urged Republican leadership to take up the DACA deal the bipartisan group of lawmakers had reached, saying the agreement had "met the president's criteria." Durbin also accused Trump of not standing by his pledge to support any deal reached by lawmakers on immigration.

“Remember at one point when he said, ‘whatever you send me I’ll sign. I’ll take the political heat on this’?" Durbin said. "Well [when] we showed up Thursday with our bipartisan bill and presented it to him it was a much different story.”