WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today shared the story of an Illinoisan, Jeannie Klein-Gordon, who was fired from her position as a researcher at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) as part of President Trump and Elon Musk’s mission to gut the federal workforce. In his speech, Durbin emphasized that laying off researchers and agricultural experts will have long-term consequences for Illinois’ economy and agricultural sector.
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Durbin began his remarks by reading excerpts from an NPR Illinois article that detailed Ms. Klein-Gordon’s story in which she worked and studied for more than 11 years to earn a position at the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research in Peoria, Illinois. At the research lab, she focused on treatments for Red Crown Rot, a disease that poses a serious threat to Illinois’ multibillion-dollar soybean industry.
“I want to tell a story about a young lady whose name is Jeannie Klein-Gordon. Jeannie ‘grew up on a dairy farm in Oregon. During her undergraduate years at Oregon State, she became interested in plant pathology – or the study of plant diseases – and spent time assisting with research at the USDA Agricultural Research Services… Then it was onto five years of doctoral work at the University of Florida, before moving to Michigan State University for two shorter post-doctoral stints. From there, she applied to a position as a research plant pathologist at the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research in Peoria, Illinois — commonly called the Ag Lab,’” Durbin read. “Klein-Gordon’s employment was terminated by email at 10:05 p.m. She was 15 months into a standard three-year probationary period for government scientists.”
“The good news is the courts have stepped in, and said, once again, the Trump Administration has overstepped in closing these jobs down,” Durbin said.
Yesterday, the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) issued a ruling that the more than 5,600 USDA probationary employees that were fired must be reinstated for at least 45 days while a MSPB investigation is completed.
Durbin then underscored how critical research is in moving the world forward, citing the Ag Lab’s involvement in mass-producing penicillin.
“The Ag Lab in Peoria is responsible for one of the dramatic breakthroughs of the 20th century. They helped to develop penicillin during World War II. Penicillin was known before, but it wasn’t developed to the point where it could be administered when a person needed it. It was the Ag Lab in Peoria that took up that challenge. As a result of taking it up, penicillin was available for our troops in World War II and saved countless lives,” Durbin said.
Durbin concluded his remarks by reiterating the importance of federal support for research institutions and their researchers.
“Is research worth it? I think it is. Whether it’s ag research or medical research at the NIH, it is fundamental to our future. These researchers, they don’t make a fortune. This young lady [Ms. Klein-Gordon] put 11 years plus into her education so that she’d have this opportunity to come to Peoria and the Ag Lab. As far as DOGE is concerned, she’s expendable, just another probationary employee,” Durbin said. “I think that’s cruel. I think it’s short-sighted. I don’t think that it builds greatness.”
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