Former Rep. Kinzinger to donate congressional papers to Pekin’s Dirksen Center

PEKIN (25 News Now) - The Dirksen Congressional Center in Pekin will house papers and artifacts belonging to former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who grew up in McLean County.

Kinzinger did not run for reelection last year. He was one of only two Republicans to serve on the House Committee that investigated the riots at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

In a statement, Kinzinger said the legacy of Everett Dirksen, the late U.S. senator from Pekin, helped guide him during his 12 years in Congress.

“I could not think of a better institution to partner with in donating my Congressional Papers from my time in Congress than the Dirksen Congressional Center,” said Kinzinger, who is now working as senior political commentator at CNN.

“Now more than ever, America needs a transparent understanding of Congress. The Dirksen Congressional Center is a leader in its mission to educate the public on the inner workings of Congress and I’m proud to be a part of furthering that mission,” Kinzinger said.

“From growing up in central Illinois to becoming one of the youngest members of the McLean County Board to his dozen years in the House, Congressman Kinzinger has reflected the values of central Illinois, including bipartisanship and independence,” the center’s executive director Tiffany White said in a statement.

“We appreciate the privilege of cataloguing and maintaining his papers alongside those of other public servants featured in our collection who demonstrated the same values over nine decades,” said White.

The Dirksen Congressional Center will also contain the papers and artifacts of U.S. Reps. Cheri Bustos and Rodney Davis, who left Congress this year.

The center also holds the papers of former U.S. Rep. and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and the late House Minority Leader Bob Michel, both from Peoria. Papers from the career of Sen. Dirksen, considered key to passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, are also housed there.