Since Trump swept the elections with Republicans taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, the former president has been naming members of his cabinet.

At an unrelated event Friday, Durbin, D-Springfield, said he was concerned about the nomination of Robert Kennedy Jr. to lead Health and Human Services under the Trump administration.

“For 70 years we have put fluoride in our drinking water believing that reducing cavities on our teeth was a good thing and that it was safe to do so,” Durbin said. “Now he’s asking questions about ‘this could be dangerous’. You start circulating these theories around the United States and predicting what will happen on social media. This will be received and will become the gospel truth for many people.

It’s unclear when the U.S. Senate will consider Trump’s nominations for confirmation votes. Durbin also questioned other appointments, such as former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, as the next attorney general. But Durbin said U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio being Secretary of State was a “worthy choice.”

“You. Marco Rubio is my friend,” Durbin said. “We disagree on many policy issues, but he is a worthy choice for Secretary of State, and there are others. I just want to say that I don’t know how this will play out, but if the hearings achieve their goal, we will get to the bottom of the fundamental questions about each of these candidates.”

On Wednesday, Illinois House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, said Democrats should stop “petty politics.”

“Instead of focusing on common-sense solutions for Illinois, they are more interested in enacting policies that counter what they think Trump might do,” McCombie said.

State lawmakers return Tuesday for their final three-day veto session.

The incoming Trump administration’s public policy impact on Chicago is being laid out by residents and city leaders.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said Donald Trump has the opportunity to work with Chicago to unite the country but demands that the wealthy “pay their fair share.” He also expressed concerns about Trump’s mass deportation plan.

“It looks like a really bad form of government that would isolate people,” Johnson said on Thursday. “This is a mentality that not only enslaves people, but also sends people to gas chambers.”

Speaking at the Greater Chicagoland Black Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, Josephine Wade, owner of Josephine’s Southern Cooking, said leaders need to put politics aside because things need to change in Illinois. People are leaving the state.

“There is a terrible housing shortage in Indiana because people are trying to move there,” Wade said. “Rents are lower, taxes are lower.”

Top Democrats like Gov. J.B. Pritzker have denied that Illinois’ population is shrinking, even though data from the U.S. Census, the IRS and private carriers show continued losses of Illinoisans to other states.