But money for the border wall is considered a nonstarter among Democrats and some Republicans.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has been tight-lipped about what he might include in immigration legislation. Still, he appeared to shoot down helping pay for Trump's border wall.
"I don't think that's realistic," he told Iowa reporters in a recent conference call.
But Durbin said Senate Democrats weren't yet willing to show their cards on their end-of-the-year strategy.
"We are not making a contingency, a quid pro quo," he told "Pod Save America," a podcast hosted by former Obama administration staffers. "We believe ... that we'll be in a better position to make that happen because look at what we're going to face in December."
Durbin added he was willing to talk to Republicans about a deal that would pair the DREAM Act with border security but said Democrats wouldn't support wall money and he wouldn't support targeting "sanctuary cities," or cities that don't comply with federal immigration law.
Durbin noted he and Cornyn have talked about border security as part of the broader immigration debate, though those discussions appeared to be preliminary.
"I told Sen. Durbin I would be happy to talk to him about it when he wants to and when he's ready," Cornyn said, when asked if he had spoken to his Democratic counterpart about linking a DACA fix to border security.
Cornyn introduced a border security and immigration enforcement bill earlier this year, but the legislation targets funding for sanctuary cities. Asked if he would be willing to drop the provision as part of the immigration talks, he joked: "I'll negotiate with him but not with you."
Meanwhile, rank-and-file Republicans appear to be gravitating toward pairing a DACA fix with tougher border security measures.
