ronz28 Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 WASHINGTON (AFP) — President Barack Obama nominated a US Army helicopter pilot who lost both her legs in an attack in Iraq as an assistant secretary at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the White House said Tuesday. Tammy Duckworth ran for a seat in the US House of Representatives as an anti-war candidate in the 2006 election, but failed to win despite a national wave of discontent with the war. She currently heads the state of Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. In her new job Duckworth will direct VA's public affairs office, as well as oversee programs for homeless Veterans, consumer affairs and special rehabilitative events. "Effective communications with veterans and VA's stakeholders is key to improving our services and ensuring veterans receive the benefits they deserve," Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki said in a statement. "Tammy Duckworth brings significant talent, leadership and personal experience to this important work." Born in Thailand to a former Marine turned diplomat and a Thai mother, Duckworth still has a trace of an accent from spending much of her youth in Southeast Asia. She joined the military while in graduate school and signed up to be a helicopter pilot because it is one of the few positions where women are able to serve in combat. She was co-piloting a Black Hawk helicopter north of Baghdad on November 12, 2004 when the cockpit was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. Duckworth managed to help land the helicopter before passing out from blood loss. She woke up 10 days later to the news that she had lost both her legs and her right arm was shattered. Once formally nominated Duckworth will need US Senate confirmation to take the job, said VA spokesman Jim Benson. Also, in a recent speech Duckworth praised service clubs such as Rotary International where she worked as a staff supervisor before being deployed to Iraq. Duckworth said members of those organizations “do something amazing” by paying dues to be a part of an organization that requires them to perform mandatory service projects.” People who serve the country through these organizations and in other ways are “why this nation is so strong,” she said. Duckworth also listed volunteering with the Parent Teacher Association, extending part-time jobs to National Guardsmen and cooking for homeless shelters as ways that civilians can serve their country. Twenty-five percent of Illinois’ homeless are veterans, she said. Duckworth spoke of her mother, an immigrant from Thailand who cooks at a Buddhist temple every week to serve the homeless. “To me, that’s as vital a service as what I did to serve the country in Iraq,” she said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkkjames Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Nice story,,,Doubt it will make the news here. Perhaps if it was Tiger Woods or Lewis Hamilton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neeranam Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Is her husband called Jack? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Nice story,,,Doubt it will make the news here. Perhaps if it was Tiger Woods or Lewis Hamilton. it's on the Nation website: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/02/04...es_30094978.php Thai-born Duckworth to be US veterans affairs assistant sec Thai-born Tammy Duckworth, veterans affairs director under ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich, is set to be the public face of the federal VA under President Barack Obama. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dumspero Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Great story! I'm behind her 100% 110% if she's always paid her taxes... Also nice to see Thai Americans who can speak Thai. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronz28 Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 Hot News from http://www.thaitownusa.com/frontnews/Index2007.aspx โอบามา เสนอชื่อ แทมมี่ ดักเวิร์ธ ลูกครึ่งไทย-สหรัฐ เป็นผู้ช่วยรัฐมนตรีว่าการกระทรวงทหารผ่านศึก ทำเนียบขาวแถลงว่า นายบารัก โอบามา ประธานาธิบดีสหรัฐ เสนอชื่อนางลัดดา แทมมี ดักเวิร์ธ ทหารผ่านศึกลูกครึ่งไทย-สหรัฐ เป็นผู้ช่วยรัฐมนตรีว่าการกระทรวงทหารผ่านศึก เมื่อวันอังคาร (3 ก.พ.) โดยนางดักเวิร์ธเป็นอดีตนักบินเฮลิคอปเตอร์ที่สูญเสียขาทั้งสองข้างและแขนขวาพิการจากสงครามอิรักในปี 2547 เมื่อเฮลิคอปเตอร์แบล็คฮอว์คที่เธอเป็นนักบินผู้ช่วย ถูกยิงระเบิดเข้าไปในเครื่องและเกิดระเบิดตรงที่เธอนั่ง นางดักเวิร์ธเคยได้รับเลือกเป็นตัวแทนพรรคเดโมแครตในการเลือกตั้งสมาชิกสภาผู้แทนราษฎร ที่รัฐอิลลินอยส์ เมื่อปี 2549 แต่พ่ายคู่แข่งจากพรรครีพับลิกันไปอย่างสูสี ในตำแหน่งผู้ช่วยรัฐมนตรีฝ่ายกิจการสาธารณะและกิจการระหว่างรัฐบาล หน้าที่ของนางดักเวิร์ธจะรวมถึงการกำกับดูแลการดำเนินกิจการสาธารณะของกระทรวง รวมถึงโครงการต่างๆ สำหรับทหารผ่านศึกไร้ที่อยู่อาศัย Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronz28 Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 I came across a video of her speech at the Democratic national convention and an interview with her discussing her experience in Iraq at: http://www.asianamericansforobama.com/tamm...vention-remarks The speech is political but it demonstrates her abilities as a spokesperson. The article also mentions she graduated from high school in Hawaii and from a University in Hawaii and other articles have stated she also went to school in SE Asia. I wonder if she attended primary school in Thailand? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tagaa Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I saw her this morning on channel 3 in a clip from an interview that will air on the evening news tonight, so says the wife. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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