Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) is an American hero.
In 2004, while serving in Iraq, Duckworth lost both of her legs when a helicopter she was piloting was shot down by an enemy rocket-propelled grenade.
And yet, the right-wing blog site Red State decided it would be a good idea to try and attack Senator Duckworth for her support of Miguel Perez Jr., a war vet who was convicted of a drug offense and then deported earlier in March. Red State posted this:
“Unfortunately Duckworth doesn’t really have a leg to stand on in making this argument.”
Duckworth, who has repeatedly referred to Donald Trump as “Cadet Bone Spurs” for the ailment that got him a deferment from service in Vietnam, wasted no time setting the record straight on Twitter:
Thanks for noticing, @RedState, but you’re wrong. I actually have two legs. They’re made of titanium, and they don’t buckle. pic.twitter.com/uj2aIO0Ahr
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) March 28, 2018
And while she was at it, Duckworth reminded the web site that Perez, who was convicted of manufacturing and delivering cocaine in 2010, suffered from PTSD, something that can only be fully appreciated and understood by those who have served in combat:
Many Veterans who suffer from PTSD struggle with addiction and land in legal jeopardy. It’s easy to pay lip service to supporting our troops and Veterans until they come home with complicated and often invisible wounds that they will carry for the rest of their lives
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) March 28, 2018
You don’t truly support our Veterans if you’re not willing to acknowledge and support them through the ugly havoc war can wreak on their lives
— Tammy Duckworth (@SenDuckworth) March 28, 2018
And Senator Duckworth got plenty of support from social media:
If I could love this reply more than once – I would.
— JWC_6 (@JWC_6) March 29, 2018
https://twitter.com/DebiFranklin1/status/979185029451427840
Senator, thank you for your service. Thank you for fighting for the right for everyone (including a-holes at @RedState) to say what that want…even if it is intended to be hateful and mean.#DuckworthWontBuckle
— ⚡️Lynis Glover⚡️ (@LYNIS) March 29, 2018
Memo to conservatives: Before you pick on Tammy Duckworth, you might wanna grow a spine and remember that she’s seen and been through shit you cannot even imagine.