In The News
Senators move to protect program for immigrant military families that Trump may end
Washington - A group of Democratic senators led by U.S. Army veteran Tammy Duckworth of Illinois unveiled a proposal on Wednesday to shield certain undocumented family members of U.S. troops from deportation, a move aimed at safeguarding a little-known immigration program the Trump administration is considering ending. The bill introduced by Duckworth would codify into law a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) program known as "Parole in Place," which has been "under review" by … Continue Reading
October 29, 2019
Boeing ‘set those pilots up for failure,’ Sen. Tammy Duckworth tells CEO at hearing probing 737 Max crashes
Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg faced withering questions from senators Tuesday about two crashes of 737 Max jets and whether the company concealed information about a critical flight system. "We have made mistakes, and we got some things wrong," Muilenburg conceded. Some members of the Senate Commerce Committee cut Muilenburg off when they believed he was failing to answer their questions about the key flight-control system implicated in both crashes. Chicago-based … Continue Reading
October 24, 2019
Sen. Duckworth: With Syria drawdown, Donald Trump turns his back on America's credibility
In the most fractious, war-torn countries in the world, victories are rare and allies you can truly count on even rarer. Yet over the past five years, the United States had found that kind of partner in the Kurds, who were willing to fight - even die - by our troops' sides to defend the free world against the Islamic State and the terror it spread. The relationship was symbiotic. We were reluctant to use ground troops in Syria to wage war against ISIS. The Kurds were willing to take that … Continue Reading
October 21, 2019
Sen. Duckworth Highlights Plan to Improve School Bus Safety Nationwide
Sen. Tammy Duckworth spoke during the 51st annual National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS) conference in Washington, D.C. about the importance of updating school buses with the latest safety technologies. She said these should include seatbelts and the funding that school districts need to install them. While the Democrat from Illinois and member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation discussed her reintroduced legislation, … Continue Reading
October 18, 2019
Airlines damage thousands of mobility aids every year. ‘It’d be an uproar’ if it were pets.
After a United Airlines flight three years ago, Isabelle Briar ripped open her thumb as she pushed her wheelchair away from the gate. The airline had cracked the metal grip ring, leaving a sharp, protruding shard. The same airline ignored Cindy Otis' complaint about damage to her power chair in 2006, responding weeks later and only after she had an attorney write a letter threatening to sue. In 2017, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, boarded a flight hours after writing federal … Continue Reading
October 18, 2019
Duckworth: ‘We have abandoned our allies’
After the Trump administration made a 'deal' with Turkey to give it everything it wants in its invasion of America's Kurdish allies, Senator Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran, joins Chris Hayes to voice her strong … Continue Reading
October 09, 2019
Duckworth: Trump's troop withdrawal from Syria a 'serious mistake' that could revive ISIS
CHAMPAIGN - Calling the president's decision a "serious mistake," Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth said Wednesday she will work with her Senate colleagues to try to halt the pullout of U.S. troops from Northern Syria. Turkey began an offensive Wednesday against the U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds, who had led the fight to defeat ISIS in that region but are considered terrorists by Turkey. "I think it's absolutely the wrong thing to do for the president to unilaterally abandon our allies who have stood … Continue Reading
October 04, 2019
Duckworth, Booker File Bill to Reduce Cost of Solar Energy for Poor Families
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., is the lead sponsor behind a new bill that aims to make solar energy more affordable for low-income Americans. Duckworth and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., recently introduced the Low-Income Solar Energy Act, which would expand an existing energy assistance program while also creating new energy financing programs for the poor. The proposed legislation would also require the Department of Energy to create a solar workforce … Continue Reading
October 03, 2019
Duckworth, other officials celebrate first-phase completion of Fox River rail bridge project in Elgin
The $34 million project to replace the Fox River rail bridge just south of Elgin's National Street Metra station and build a second rail bridge alongside it could be completed as soon as next fall, officials said. A ceremony to celebrate the first phase of work being finished on the Metra Z100 Fox River Bridge was held Thursday and attended by U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, U.S. Reps, Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Schaumburg, and Sean Casten, D-Downers Grove, who represent the Elgin area, and … Continue Reading
September 21, 2019
Durbin and Duckworth ask FCC to step up prevention of robocalls
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) on Wednesday urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to use the tools at its disposal to curb the number of robocalls received by Americans. In a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and the four FCC Commissioners, Durbin and Duckworth urged the agency to enhance traceback efforts to bring these scammers to justice, stop this illicit robocall traffic, and prioritize enforcing the laws already on the books. Robocallers placed 172 … Continue Reading
September 20, 2019
Hearing on online extremism amid ‘gun-violence crisis’ shows Congress’s ‘absurdity,’ says Democratic senator
Nothing highlights the absurdity of Congress's inability to solve the gun-violence crisis then seeing 318 mass shootings in 260 days, and then holding a hearing on extremism in social media.'Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth That line came from Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth during a Wednesday hearing of the Senate Commerce Committee titled "Mass Violence, Extremism and Digital Responsibility." The panel's chairman, Mississippi Republican Sen. Roger Wicker, noted in his opening … Continue Reading
September 19, 2019
Duckworth unloads on Trump over possible attack on Iran
Vowing to "do our troops justice," U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., today demanded President Donald Trump ask Congress for a declaration of war before launching any attack on Iran. In a fiery speech delivered on the Senate floor, as tensions build over an assault on Saudi Arabia oil fields, the combat-veteran lawmaker accused Trump of effectively outsourcing to Saudi officials the decision on whether there will be a U.S. military response to the attack. "We have not authorized (Trump) to … Continue Reading
September 10, 2019
Sen. Tammy Duckworth on Bolton ouster: Trump, aides, ‘can’t seem to get their act together’
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's ouster on Tuesday of now former national security adviser John Bolton is not good for the morale of U.S. troops and shows the commander-in-chief and his top aides "can't seem to get their act together," said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill. Minutes after Trump announced on Twitter that he told Bolton on Monday night "that his services are no longer needed at the White House," MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell interviewed Duckworth, a member of the Armed Services … Continue Reading
September 06, 2019
Duckworth bill would help put seat belts on every U.S. school bus
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., reintroduced legislation Friday that she says would make it safer for students to ride school buses. At a Friday afternoon news conference outside Little Village Academy, Duckworth urged Congress to take up the "School Bus Safety Act." "It worries me that not all school buses have seat belts," said Duckworth, a member of the Senate Transportation & Safety subcommittee. "No parent should worry that their child could be injured on a school bus when there … Continue Reading
September 04, 2019
Durbin, Duckworth announces nearly $38M to Illinois to combat opioid epidemic
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced on Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded Illinois a total of $37,906,897 through the State Opioid Response Grant Program and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Overdose Data to Action Funding Program. Under the announcement, the State of Illinois will receive $28,989,372 in funding through the State Opioid Response Grant Program. Also, the City of Chicago's … Continue Reading
August 29, 2019
Veterans condemn new citizenship policy for kids of overseas U.S. service members
Prominent veterans are calling on the Trump administration to reverse a new policy announced this week that would end automatic citizenship for some children of U.S. military personnel or government employees stationed abroad. The change would apply to the offspring of certain members of the U.S. military and government employees stationed abroad who are now automatically granted citizenship. The parents of those children could apply for citizenship for them, but it would not be … Continue Reading
August 24, 2019
Duckworth forges ties between Thailand, US
Four years ago when Thai-American US Senator Ladda "Tammy" Duckworth visited Thailand, she was still a member of the House of Representatives. This time, in her new post as a senator, she accepted an invitation from the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy to visit Thailand. The US congresswoman had an audience with HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, and also met with Thai politicians including Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and House Speaker Chuan Leekpai, along with visiting her … Continue Reading
August 23, 2019
Thai-American US senator hails 'messy' democracy in Bangkok
Thai-American US Senator Tammy Duckworth on Friday urged Thais to be patient with the "messy" nature of democracy, during her first official visit to her birthplace Bangkok since she was elected in 2016. Duckworth's comments come two months after 2014 coup leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha was reinstalled as Thailand's civilian premier following a highly disputed poll. The US Senator met Prayut on Friday morning, after a press conference where she congratulated Thailand on a "successful … Continue Reading
August 20, 2019
School bus crash demonstration shows importance of seat belts to keep kids safe
How safe is a school bus without seat belts when it comes to protecting children in the event of a crash? NBC News investigative and consumer correspondent Vicky Nguyen traveled to a commercial crash test facility to see what can happen when an accident occurs in a bus without seat belts, which aren't required under federal law. Three people were injured after a school bus fell onto its side in a crash in November in Arizona, and other incidents have occurred in Texas, North Carolina and … Continue Reading
August 15, 2019
Arsenal gets $52M for renovations, IT upgrades
The Rock Island Arsenal has secured $52 million in federal funding for renovations and information technology upgrades for the Army Sustainment Command Headquarters. In a joint announcement released Thursday, U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said the funding will go toward repairing or upgrading windows, floors, ceilings, interior and exterior walls, plumbing, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, fire … Continue Reading
