Durbin blamed conservatives for his troubles, saying that he refused to be "intimidated by the right-wing message machine."

"If I'm going to back off every time they decide they're unhappy with my statements, then I really won't be doing my job."

Durbin vowed to pursue his investigation into Nazi-like abuses perpetrated by U.S. troops, telling the paper: "We're going to continue to follow this [and] demand that the administration be held accountable."

The comments were a far cry from the No. 2 Senate Democrat's contrite-sounding press release issued earlier in the day.

"I have learned from my statement that historical parallels can be misused and misunderstood," Durbin explained. "I sincerely regret if what I said caused anyone to misunderstand my true feelings: Our soldiers around the world and their families at home deserve our respect, admiration and total support."

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