Tammy Duckworth made quite the splash earlier this week at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, NC.  Duckworth is a veteran of the Iraq war, where she served as a helicopter pilot for the US Army, losing both her legs and permanently damaging her arm.  But it’s not what she lost that was the center of attention in Charlotte.  Nor was it her illustrious career after the war or her own campaign for the 8th congressional district in Illinois, which is currently held by Republican Joe Wash.  Tammy Duckworth is again putting others before herself by taking the time out to back Obama’s re-election campaign rather than staying on her own campaign trail.

Critics of President Obama have complained that he has depended on support from others, especially former president Bill Clinton, but has not promoted other Democrats running their own campaigns.

Selflessness was something that Duckworth stressed with her speech in Charlotte. “It’s about whether we do for our fellow Americans what my crew did for me, whether we’ll look out for the hardest hit and the disabled, whether we’ll pull together in a time of need, whether we’ll refuse to give up until the job is done,” she said.

Duckworth was born in Bangkok, Thailand and is fluent in Thai and Indonesian.  After studies at the University of Hawaii, George Washington University, and Northern Illinois University, she joined the US Army.  Lieutenant Colonel Duckworth has been awarded a Purple Heart along with numerous other awards.

Read the Chicago Tribune report on Duckworth’s DNC speech here.
Tammy Duckworth’s official website: www.tammyduckworth.com