Sen. Mark Kirk, a Republican incumbent from Illinois, has drawn ire from his Democratic challenger Tammy Duckworth in the coming Senate race for remarks made during a debate Thursday night, where he attacked her for her Asian heritage and military career.
Kirk, who’s currently losing the battle in the polls, told Duckworth – a Thai American Army helicopter pilot who lost both of her legs during a crash in Iraq – that he’d “forgotten that [her] parents came all the way from Thailand to serve George Washington” after Duckworth mentioned her family’s military history and made a plea for better foreign policies, NY Daily News reported.
Not only were Kirk’s remarks considered to be racist by some, they were factually incorrect, as Duckworth was born in Thailand to a Thai mother of Chinese heritage and an American father who was a U.S. Marine and a World War II veteran.
My mom is an immigrant and my dad and his family have served this nation in uniform since the Revolution #ILSEN pic.twitter.com/ehEBHswFMs
— Tammy Duckworth (@TammyforIL) October 28, 2016
According to Mother Jones, Duckworth’s farther traces his heritage all the way back to the American Revolution. No one in her family came from Thailand to serve Washington during the 18th century.
Many Democrats immediately demanded an apology, noting that Kirk himself has made questionable claims about his own military service.
“Senator Kirk has been caught lying about his military record over 10 times, but he was quick to launch false attacks questioning Congresswoman Duckworth’s family’s long history of serving our country,” Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokeswoman Lara Sisselman said in a statement. “[His] attack on Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth’s family tonight was offensive, wrong, and racist.”
Though Kirk didn’t apologize at first, he took to Twitter Friday afternoon to express regret about his comments. “Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family’s service,” he tweeted.
Sincere apologies to an American hero, Tammy Duckworth, and gratitude for her family’s service. #ilsen
— Mark Kirk (@MarkKirk) October 28, 2016
However, before making amends for his comments, Kirk’s campaign first released a non-apologetic statement further condemning Duckworth. “Senator Kirk has consistently called Rep. Duckworth a war hero and honors her family’s service to this country,” Kirk spokeswoman Eleni Demertzi told the Washington Post. “But that’s not what this debate was about. Rep. Duckworth lied about her legal troubles, was unable to defend her failures at the VA and then falsely attacked Senator Kirk over his record on supporting gay rights.”
