Sen. Tammy Duckworth is scheduled to deliver an address to the Democratic National Convention on Thursday. Here’s what you need to know about the Illinois federal legislature.
She was born in Bangkok, Thailand, in 1968 and is fluent in Thai and Indonesian. She attended college at the University of Hawaii and received a Master of Arts in International Affairs from George Washington University.
After graduating, Duckworth moved to Illinois and began studying for her Ph.D. in Political Science from Northern Illinois University.
In 2004, Duckworth was deployed to Iraq as a Blackhawk helicopter pilot for the Illinois Army National Guard and was hit by an RPG. She lost both legs in the attack. She injured her right arm and lost some use of it.
She received the Purple Heart for her injuries.
DUCKWORTH VERFERDT BILL CLINTON DNC SELECTION; PARTY IS ‘THE BIG TENT AND ALL KINDS OF FOLK FIT IT UNDERNEATH IT’
After becoming Director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs, she was appointed by then-President Barack Obama to serve as Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Duckworth, 52, was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012, and serves on the Armed Services Commission. She was later elected to the First Chamber in 2016.
Duckworth made public comments in May on allegations of sexual assault against Joe Biden, saying the women who accused him deserved to be heard.
“Every woman who brings, or every man for that matter, who brings accusations of abuse to the fore, especially in the workplace, deserves to be heard, and I think for sure we should look at these accusations carefully,” said Duckworth, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
She also defends Bill Clinton’s invitation to speak at the convention, despite photos surfacing of one of Jeffrey Epstein’s female prosecutors giving the former president a neck massage.
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“I will be able to defend Bill Clinton himself and I will let Bill Clinton make his remarks tonight,” Duckworth told Bret Baier of ‘Special Report’ on Tuesday. “What I can tell you is that the Democratic Party is a big tent and fits all kinds of people under it. And I welcome anyone who really wants to come and work to solve the problems we have in this country. “
Their covenant speech will be played between 9 and 11 a.m., according to the party’s website.
