U.S.A.
Page 8 n THE ASIAN REPORTER
November 7, 2016
Kirk apologizes for mocking rival’s family military history
By Sara Burnett
The Associated Press
C
HICAGO — U.S. senator Mark
Kirk (R - Illinois) apologized for
mocking his Democratic rival’s
immigrant background and her claim that
her family’s military service dates back to
the Revolution — comments that drew
wide criticism and threatened an already
difficult re-election campaign.
“Sincere apologies to an American hero,
Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her
family’s service,” Kirk wrote in a Twitter
post.
During a debate in October, U.S.
representative Tammy Duckworth said
her family has “served this nation in
uniform going back to the Revolution.”
Kirk responded that he had forgotten
that the congresswoman’s “parents came
all the way from Thailand to serve George
Washington.”
Duckworth, an Iraq War veteran who
lost both legs when the Black Hawk she
was piloting was shot down in 2004, was
born in Bangkok. Her mother, who is of
Chinese descent, was born in Thailand.
Duckworth has said her father first went
to Southeast Asia while serving with the
Marines in Vietnam.
Kirk’s remark was greeted mostly by
silence in the auditorium of the University
of Illinois in Springfield. Elsewhere, there
were quick calls for him to apologize. The
Democratic Senatorial Campaign Com-
mittee immediately called the comment
“offensive, wrong, and racist.”
Duckworth, the first Asian-American
congresswoman from Illinois, later
tweeted a photo of herself with her
parents, including her father in uniform
displaying his medals. Her tweet says: “My
mom is an immigrant and my dad and his
family have served this nation in uniform
since the Revolution.”
Kirk left the debate without speaking to
reporters. Campaign manager Kevin Artl
said the senator has called Duckworth “a
war hero in his commercials and he
commends her family’s service.”
Kirk’s campaign said the senator tried to
contact Duckworth by phone to apologize
before posting his apology on Twitter.
Duckworth’s campaign confirmed he had
reached out, but it was unclear whether
the candidates spoke.
Kirk’s comments drew heavy scorn
across social media. Democratic presiden-
tial nominee Hillary Clinton posted on
Twitter that she is thankful for Duck-
worth’s and her family’s service, adding:
“It’s really not that hard to grasp, Mark
Kirk.”
Donald Trump’s campaign manager also
took the opportunity to jab at Kirk, who
earlier this year withdrew his support for
the GOP presidential nominee and has
been a vocal critic.
“The same Mark Kirk that unendorsed
his party’s presidential nominee and
called him out in paid ads? Gotcha. Good
luck,” Kellyanne Conway posted on
Twitter.
Kirk, who suffered a stroke in 2012 and
returned to work one year later, is seen as
one of the senate’s most vulnerable
Republican incumbents. The first-term
senator from the Chicago suburb of
Highland Park is running in a state that
leans heavily Democratic, particularly in
presidential election years.
Kirk has worked to distance himself
from Trump and the GOP, saying he is an
independent voice who can work with
Democrats to get things done. He often
MILITARY HISTORY MOCKED. Democratic
U.S. representative Tammy Duckworth, left, and Re-
publican U.S. senator Mark Kirk, right, face off in a
televised debate in what is considered a crucial race
that could determine which party controls the senate,
on October 27, 2016 at the University of Illinois in
Springfield, Illinois. Kirk apologized for mocking his
Democratic rival’s immigrant background and her
claim that her family’s military service dates back to
the Revolution — comments that drew wide criticism
and threatened an already difficult re-election cam-
paign. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
notes his “F” rating from the National Rifle
Association and that he broke with his
party to call for hearings on President
Barack Obama’s pick for the Supreme
Court.
But Kirk has complicated his own
re-election bid with his tendency to make
off-color statements. In August, he said
Obama was acting like the “drug dealer in
chief” when the U.S. made a $400 million
payment to Iran contingent on the return
of U.S. prisoners.
He apologized in 2015 after referring to
South Carolina U.S. senator Lindsey
Graham, who’s unmarried, as a “bro with
no ho.”
During his first bid for the senate in
2010, Kirk acknowledged he had exagger-
ated some of his own military record, in-
cluding stating that he came under enemy
fire while flying reconnaissance missions
in Iraq as a Navy intelligence officer.
Democrats
consider
Duckworth’s
success on Election Day one of the keys to
reclaiming a majority in the chamber. The
second-term congresswoman from the
Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates has a
comfortable lead in the most recent polls,
but Kirk says the race is closer than people
think.
Ivan Moreno contributed to this
report from Springfield, Illinois.
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Kevin Richards
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Fox Hollow Ranch, Madras
William
ll
D. Rutherford
h f d
Former Oregon State Treasurer
Bobbi
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Harrold’s Dairy, Creswell
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