Ladda Tammy Duckworth [ 2 ] ( born March 12, 1968 ) is an american politician and retire Army National Guard deputy colonel serve as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented Illinois ‘s eighth congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2013 to 2017. Duckworth was educated at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and George Washington University. A battle veteran of the Iraq War, she served as a U.S. Army helicopter pilot burner. In 2004, when her helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents, she lost both legs and some mobility in her correct arm. She was the first female double amputee from the war. [ 3 ] Despite her injuries, she sought and obtained a checkup release that allowed her to continue serving in the Illinois Army National Guard until she retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2014.
Reading: Tammy Duckworth – Wikipedia
Duckworth ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the United States House of Representatives in 2006, then served as conductor of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and as assistant repository for public and intergovernmental affairs at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs from 2009 to 2011. In 2012, Duckworth was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where she served two terms. Duckworth was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016, defeating republican incumbent Mark Kirk. [ 4 ] She is the first Thai American woman elected to Congress, the first person born in Thailand elected to Congress, the first woman with a disability elected to Congress, the beginning female double amputee in the Senate, and the first senator to give birth while in office. Duckworth is the second of three asian american women to serve in the U.S. Senate, after Mazie Hirono, and before Kamala Harris .
early life and education
Duckworth was born in Bangkok, Thailand, the daughter of Franklin Duckworth and Lamai Sompornpairin. [ 5 ] Under long-standing US law, she is a natural-born citizen because her founder was american. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] Her beget, who died in 2005, [ 8 ] was a veteran of the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps [ 9 ] who traced his kin ‘s american roots to the american Revolutionary War. [ 10 ] Her mother is Thai Chinese [ 11 ] and in the first place from Chiang Mai. [ 12 ] Her church father worked with the United Nations and international companies in refugee, housing, and development programs, [ 13 ] and the class moved around Southeast Asia. Duckworth became eloquent in Thai and Indonesian, in addition to English. [ 14 ] Duckworth attended Singapore american School, the International School Bangkok, and the Jakarta International School. [ 15 ] [ 16 ] The syndicate moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, when Duckworth was 16, and she attended Honolulu ‘s McKinley High School, where she participated in track and field and graduated in 1985. [ 17 ] Because of a remainder in the grade levels between the school systems she attended, Duckworth skipped half of her ninth grade year and half of her one-tenth. [ 18 ] She was a Girl Scout, and earned her foremost class, now called the Gold Award. [ 19 ] Her forefather was unemployed for a time, and the family relied on public aid. [ 13 ] She graduated from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science. In 1992, she received a master of Arts in international affairs from George Washington University ‘s Elliott School of International Affairs. [ 20 ] [ 21 ] She began a PhD program at Northern Illinois University, which was interrupted by her war avail. [ 22 ] She completed a PhD in human services at Capella University in March 2015. [ 23 ]
military serve
Captain Duckworth in 2000 Following in the footsteps of her father, who served in World War II and the Vietnam War, [ 9 ] and ancestors who served in every major conflict since the Revolutionary War, [ 10 ] Duckworth joined the Army Reserve Officers ‘ Training Corps [ 24 ] in 1990 as a graduate student at George Washington University. [ 25 ] [ 26 ] She became a commission military officer in the United States Army Reserve in 1992 and chose to fly helicopters [ 24 ] because it was one of the few combat jobs open to women at that time. [ 27 ] As a penis of the Army Reserve, she went to flight school, later transferring to the Army National Guard and in 1996 entering the Illinois Army National Guard. [ 24 ] Duckworth besides worked as a staff supervisor at Rotary International headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, [ 28 ] [ 29 ] and was the coordinator of the Center for Nursing Research at Northern Illinois University. [ 30 ] Duckworth was working toward a Ph.D. in political skill at Northern Illinois University, with research interests in the political economy and public health of southeast Asia, when she was deployed to Iraq in 2004. [ 28 ] She lost her correct stage near the hip and her left branch below the knee [ 31 ] from injuries sustained on November 12, 2004, when the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter she was co-piloting was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents. [ 32 ] She was the first american female double amputee from the Iraq War. [ 3 ] The explosion hard broke her right weapon and torus tissue from it, necessitating major surgery to repair it. Duckworth received a Purple Heart [ 32 ] on December 3 and was promoted to Major on December 21 at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, [ 33 ] where she was presented with an Air Medal and Army Commendation Medal. [ 32 ] She retired from the Illinois Army National Guard in October 2014 as a lieutenant colonel. [ 34 ]
In 2011 the Daughters of the american Revolution erected a statue with Duckworth ‘s likeness and that of Molly Pitcher in Mount Vernon, Illinois. The statue was dedicated to female veterans. [ 35 ]
Government military service
Duckworth being sworn in as Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, by Judge John J. Farley with her conserve Bryan Bowlsbey beside her On November 21, 2006, several weeks after losing her first congressional campaign, Duckworth was appointed director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs by Governor Rod Blagojevich. [ 36 ] [ 37 ] She served in that position until February 8, 2009. While director, she was credited with starting a program to help veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ) and veterans with brain injuries. [ 38 ]
On September 17, 2008, Duckworth attended a campaign event for Dan Seals, the democratic campaigner for Illinois ‘s tenth congressional district. She used vacation time, but violated Illinois jurisprudence by going to the consequence in a state-owned vanguard that was equipped for a person with physical disabilities. She acknowledged the err and repaid the state for the manipulation of the avant-garde. [ 39 ] In 2009, two Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs employees at the Anna Veterans ‘ Home in Union County filed a lawsuit against Duckworth. [ 40 ] The lawsuit alleged that she wrongfully terminated one employee and threatened and intimidated another for bringing reports of abuse and wrongdoing of veterans when she was head of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. [ 41 ] Duckworth was represented in the befit by the Illinois Attorney General ‘s position. [ 42 ] The case was dismissed doubly but refilings were allowed. [ 43 ] [ 44 ] The casing settled in June 2016 for $ 26,000 with no admission of wrongdoing. [ 43 ] The plaintiffs later indicated they no longer wanted to settle, but the judge gave them 21 days to sign the village and canceled the test. [ 45 ] [ 46 ] On February 3, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Duckworth to be the Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs ( VA ). [ 47 ] and the United States Senate confirmed her for the placement on April 22. [ 48 ] As Assistant Secretary, she coordinated a articulation enterprise with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help end Veteran homelessness, worked to address the alone challenges faced by female angstrom well as native american Veterans and created the Office of Online Communications to improve the VA ‘s handiness, specially among young Veterans. [ 49 ] Duckworth resigned her situation in June 2011 in order to launch her campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives in Illinois ‘s eighth congressional zone. [ 50 ]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2006
After longtime incumbent Republican Henry Hyde announced his retirement from Congress, several candidates began campaigning for the loose seat. Duckworth won the democratic chief with a plurality of 44 %, defeating 2004 campaigner Christine Cegelis with 40 %, and Wheaton College professor Lindy Scott with 16 %. State Senator Peter Roskam was unopposed in the Republican primary. For the general election, Duckworth was endorsed by EMILY ‘s List, a political action committee that supports female democratic candidates who back abortion rights. [ 51 ] Duckworth was besides endorsed by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Fraternal Order of Police. [ 52 ] [ 53 ] While she raised $ 4.5 million to Roskam ‘s $ 3.44 million, Duckworth lost by 4,810 votes, receiving 49 % to Roskam ‘s 51 %. [ 54 ]
2012
Duckworth as a U.S. Representative during the 113th congress In July 2011, Duckworth launched her campaign to run in 2012 for Illinois ‘s eighth congressional district. She defeated former Deputy Treasurer of Illinois Raja Krishnamoorthi for the democratic nomination on March 20, 2012, then faced incumbent Republican Joe Walsh in the general election. [ 55 ] Duckworth received the second of both the Chicago Tribune and the Daily Herald. [ 56 ] [ 57 ] Walsh generated controversy when in July 2012, at a crusade consequence, he accused Duckworth of politicizing her military service and injuries, saying “ my God, that ‘s all she talks about. Our dependable heroes, the men and women who served us, it ‘s the death matter in the worldly concern they talk about. ” Walsh called the controversy over his comments “ a political ploy to distort my words and perturb voters ” and said that “ Of course Tammy Duckworth is a hero … I have called her a hero hundreds of times. ” [ 58 ] On November 6, 2012, Duckworth defeated Walsh 55 % –45 %, [ 59 ] making her the first Asian-American from Illinois in Congress, [ 60 ] the first charwoman with a disability elected to Congress, [ 61 ] and the beginning member of Congress born in Thailand. [ 62 ]
2014
In the 2014 general election, Duckworth faced Republican Larry Kaifesh, a United States Marine Corps military officer who had recently left active duty as a colonel. [ 63 ] Duckworth defeated Kaifesh with 56 % of the vote. [ 64 ]
tenure
Duckworth was sworn into office on January 3, 2013. [ 65 ] On April 3, 2013, Duckworth publicly returned 8.4 % ( $ 1,218 ) of her congressional wage for that calendar month to the United States Department of Treasury in solidarity with furlough government workers. [ 66 ] On June 26, 2013, during a hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Duckworth received national media attention after questioning Strong Castle CEO Braulio Castillo on a $ 500 million government shrink the company had been awarded based on Castillo ‘s disable veteran status. [ 67 ] [ 68 ] Castillo had injured his ankle at the US Military Academy ‘s homework school, USMAPS, in 1984. [ 69 ]
Committee assignments
U.S. Senate
Elections
2016
On March 30, 2015, Duckworth announced that she would challenge incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Mark Kirk for his seat in the 2016 Senate election in Illinois. [ 70 ] Duckworth defeated boyfriend Democrats Andrea Zopp and Napoleon Harris in the primary coil election on March 15, 2016. [ 71 ] During a telecast consider on October 27, 2016, Duckworth talked about her ancestors ‘ by serve in the United States military. Kirk responded, “ I ‘d forgotten that your parents came all the means from Thailand to serve George Washington. ” The comment led to the Human Rights Campaign withdrawing their endorsement of Kirk and switching it to Duckworth, stating his comments were “ profoundly dysphemistic and racist. ” [ 72 ] [ 73 ] Duckworth was endorsed by Barack Obama, who actively campaigned for her. [ 74 ] On November 8, Duckworth defeated Kirk 54 percentage to 40 percentage to win the Senate seat. [ 75 ] Duckworth and Kamala Harris, who was besides elected in 2016, are the second and third gear female asian american english senators, after Mazie Hirono who was elected in 2012. [ 4 ]
tenure
Senate Diversity Initiative in digest of diverseness in the Senate and its staff, June 21, 2017
2010s
According to The Center for Effective Lawmaking ( CEL ), a joint partnership between the University of Virginia ‘s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and Vanderbilt University, [ 76 ] Duckworth ‘s “ Legislative Effectiveness Score ” ( LES ) is “ exceed Expectations ” as a newcomer senator in the hundred-and-fifteenth Congress ( 2017–2018 ), the 11th highest out of 48 democratic senators. [ 77 ] GovTrack ‘s Report Card on Duckworth for the 115th Congress found that among Senate freshmen, she ranked foremost in favorably reporting bills out of committee and “ Got influential cosponsors the most much compared to Senate freshmen. ” [ 78 ] GovTrack besides found that in the first session of the 116th Congress, Duckworth ranked first in favorably reporting bills out of committee and “ Got influential cosponsors the most much compared to Senate sophomores. ” [ 79 ] During the 115th Congress, Duckworth was credited with saving the Americans with Disabilities Act. [ 80 ] specifically, she led public opposition to a controversial bill, H.R. 620, [ 81 ] and led 42 senators in pledging to oppose any feat to pass H.R. 620 through the Senate. [ 82 ] The Veterans Service Organization and Paralyzed Veterans of America recognized Duckworth ‘s leadership in defending the Americans with Disabilities Act. [ 83 ] In January 2018, when the federal government shut down after the Senate could not agree on a fund circular, Duckworth responded to President Trump ‘s accusations that the Democrats were putting “ illegitimate immigrants ” ahead of the military :
I spent my integral pornographic liveliness looking out for the wellbeing, the training, the equip of the troops for whom I was responsible. deplorably, this is something that the current resident of the Oval Office does not seem to care to do—and I will not be lectured about what our military needs by a five-deferment draft dodger. And I have a message for Cadet Bone Spurs : If you cared about our military, you ‘d stop baiting Kim Jong Un into a war that could put 85,000 American troops, and millions of innocent civilians, in danger. [ 84 ]
Stop Kavanaugh crush conference on September 6, 2018 In 2018, Duckworth became the first base U.S. senator to give birth while in agency. [ 85 ] shortly subsequently, the Senate passed Senate Resolution 463, which Duckworth introduced on April 12, 2018, [ 86 ] by consentaneous consent. The resolving power changed Senate rules so that a senator may bring a child under one class old to the Senate floor during votes. [ 87 ] The day after the rules were changed, Duckworth ‘s daughter became the first baby on the Senate floor. [ 86 ] [ 88 ]
2020s
Read more: David Prowse
Read more: David Prowse
On April 15, 2020, the Trump government invited Duckworth to join a bipartisan task force on the reopen of the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic. [ 89 ] Duckworth was publicly critical of Trump ‘s decision to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in September 2020. Barrett, a dear Catholic, is a member of a group that considers in vitro fertilization morally illegitimate. Duckworth said that Barrett ‘s membership in such an constitution was “ disabling and, honestly, insulting to every parent ”. Both of Duckworth ‘s children were conceived by IVF. [ 90 ] The Center for Effective Lawmaking, a joint enterprise of the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University, ranked Duckworth the fifth most effective democratic senator in the 116th Congress and the most effective democratic senator on exile policy. [ 91 ] Professors Craig Volden and Alan Wiseman, co-directors of the Center for Effective Lawmaking, stated, “ While however in her first gear term, Senator Tammy Duckworth has risen to the crown five among effective democratic lawmakers in the Senate. She sponsored 77 bills in the 116th Congress, with four of them passing the Republican-controlled Senate and two becoming law. ” [ 92 ] Duckworth was participating in the documentation of the 2021 United States Electoral College vote count when Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. In the awaken of the approach, Duckworth called Trump “ a menace to our nation ” and called for his immediate removal from office through the invocation of the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution or impeachment. [ 93 ] Two days by and by, on January 8, she besides called for the resignation of Representative Mary Miller, who had quoted Adolf Hitler during a speech on January 5. [ 94 ]
Committee assignments
stream
previous
Caucus memberships
National politics
Duckworth has spoken at the 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020 democratic National Conventions. [ 96 ] [ 97 ] [ 98 ] She was the permanent co-chair of the 2020 democratic National Convention. [ 99 ] At the 2020 convention she called Trump “ coward-in-chief ” for not supporting the american military. [ 100 ] [ 101 ] Duckworth was vetted as a possible running match during Joe Biden ‘s frailty presidential candidate choice. [ 102 ] Fellow U.S. Senator Kamala Harris was rather selected. Biden nominated Duckworth to serve as Vice Chair of the democratic National Committee, along with Gretchen Whitmer, Keisha Lance Bottoms and Filemon Vela Jr. [ 103 ]
political positions
environment
In April 2019, Duckworth was one of 12 senators to sign a bipartisan letter to top senators on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development advocating that the Energy Department be granted maximum fund for carbon paper capture, use and storage ( CCUS ), arguing that american job growth could be stimulated by investment in feasible options to capture carbon paper emissions and expressing disagreement with Trump ‘s 2020 budget request to combine the two federal programs that include carbon paper capture research. [ 104 ]
foreign policy
Salute to Fallen Asian Pacific Islander Heroes in Duckworth narrates thein Arlington, Virginia, June 2, 2005. During her unsuccessful congressional campaign in 2006, Duckworth called on Congress to audit the estimate $ 437 billion spent on oversea military and foreign aid since September 11, 2001. [ 105 ] On September 30, 2006, Duckworth gave the Democratic Party ‘s response to President George W. Bush ‘s weekly radio address. In it, she was critical of Bush ‘s scheme for the Iraq War. [ 106 ] In October 2006, The Sunday Times reported that Duckworth agreed with General Sir Richard Dannatt, the british Army foreman, that the presence of coalescence troops was exacerbating the conflict in Iraq. [ 107 ] Duckworth supports continued U.S. military aid to Israel and opposes the movement for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions ( BDS ) against Israel. She voiced her opposition to Israel ‘s plan to annex parts of the engaged West Bank. [ 108 ] In May 2019, Duckworth was a cosponsor of the South China Sea and East China Sea Sanctions Act, [ 109 ] a bipartisan charge reintroduced by Marco Rubio and Ben Cardin that was intended to disrupt China ‘s consolidation or expansion of its claims of jurisdiction over both the sea and air out distance in quarrel zones in the South China Sea. [ 110 ] On June 6, 2021, Duckworth and Senators Dan Sullivan and Christopher Coons visited Taipei in an U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III conveyance to meet President Tsai Ing-wen and Minister Joseph Wu during the pandemic outbreak of Taiwan to announce President Joe Biden ‘s contribution design of 750,000 COVID-19 vaccines included in the ball-shaped COVAX platform. [ 111 ] [ 112 ]
Gun jurisprudence
Duckworth was rated by the National Rifle Association as having a pro- gun control congressional vote commemorate. [ 113 ] Duckworth, who is a gun owner herself, cites ferocity in Chicago as a major influence for her support of accelerator control. She supports universal background checks and the stem of state-to-state gunman traffic. [ 114 ] Duckworth participated in the 2016 Chris Murphy accelerator manipulate filibuster. During the sit-in, Duckworth hid her mobile phone in her prosthetic leg to avoid it being taken away from her since taking pictures and recording on the House floor is against policy. [ 114 ] In a 2016 interview with GQ cartridge holder, Duckworth stated that gaining control of the Senate and “ closing the gap ” in the House would be necessary in orderliness to pass common feel accelerator laws. She besides stated that she believed moderate Republicans, who support common sense grease-gun dominance, would have more world power to influence gunman control if they were not “ pushed digression by those folks who are absolutely behold to the NRA. And thus we never get the vote. ” [ 114 ]
Health policy
Duckworth supports abortion rights [ 115 ] [ 116 ] and the Affordable Care Act. [ 117 ]
immigration
Duckworth supports comprehensive examination immigration reform with a nerve pathway to citizenship for those in the country illegally. She would admit 100,000 syrian refugees into the United States. [ 117 ] In August 2018, Duckworth was one of seventeen senators to sign a letter spearheaded by Kamala Harris to United States Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen demanding that the Trump administration take immediate action in attempting to reunite 539 migrant children with their families, citing each passing day of inaction as intensifying “ trauma that this administration has needlessly caused for children and their families seeking human-centered security. ” [ 118 ]
electoral history
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 32,575 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 177,957 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 25,833 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 225,066 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 151,056 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 1,895,144 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 5,491,878 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total votes | 427 | 100 | ||
| Votes necessary | 214 | >50 | ||
Awards and accolades
In May 2010, Duckworth was awarded the Honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters ( DHL ) by Northern Illinois University. [ 126 ] [ 127 ] In 2011, Chicago ‘s Access Living honored Duckworth for her sour on behalf of veterans with disabilities, bestowing her with the Gordon H. Mansfield Congressional Leadership Award. [ 128 ] Duckworth is heavily decorated for her service in Iraq, with over 10 distinct military honors, most notably the Purple Heart, an prize her Marine forefather had besides received. [ 32 ] early Republican presidential campaigner and Senator from Kansas Bob Dole dedicated his autobiography One Soldier’s Story in character to Duckworth. [ 129 ] Duckworth credits Dole for inspiring her to pursue public service, while she recuperated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center ; although, in 2006, Dole endorsed Duckworth ‘s republican opposition, Peter Roskam. [ 130 ]
personal life
Duckworth has been married to Bryan Bowlsbey since 1993. [ 131 ] They met during Duckworth ‘s participation in the Reserve Officers ‘ Training Corps and former served together in the Illinois Army National Guard. [ 131 ] Bowlsbey, a Signal Corps officeholder, is besides a veteran of the Iraq War. [ 131 ] [ 132 ] Both have since retired from the armed forces. [ 133 ] Duckworth and Bowlsbey have two daughters : Abigail, who was born in 2014, [ 134 ] and Maile, born in 2018. [ 135 ] Maile ‘s parturition made Duckworth the first base U.S. Senator to give birth while in agency. [ 135 ] [ 136 ] Former senator Daniel Akaka helped the couple with the appoint of both daughters ; Akaka died April 6, 2018, three days before Maile was born. [ 137 ] curtly after Maile ‘s parentage, a Senate rule change permitted senators to bring children under one year old on the Senate floor to breastfeed. [ 86 ] This was a symbolic consequence for Duckworth, as she had previously introduced the bipartisan Friendly Airports for Mothers ( FAM ) Act to ensure modern mothers access to safe, scavenge and accessible lactation rooms in airports. [ 49 ] The day after the rule change, Duckworth brought Maile with her during the vomit of a Senate vote, making Duckworth the first senator to cast a vote while holding a baby. [ 86 ] [ 88 ] Duckworth helped establish the Intrepid Foundation to help hurt veterans. [ 138 ]
bibliography
See besides
References
Read more: Clint Barton (Marvel Cinematic Universe)