Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) blasted a ranking House Republican after he accused Democrats of being “in love with terrorists,” CNN reported on Thursday.
Duckworth, a former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel who lost both legs while serving as a helicopter pilot, said in a CNN interview that she’s “disgusted” by the comments of Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee.
“In an interview Wednesday on Fox News,” CNN says, Collins “also claimed, without evidence, that members of the Democratic Party mourn the recent death of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani more than they do fallen US service members.”
CNN pointed out that in fact, no Democrat in Congress has mourned Soleimani, who ordered for years plotted attacks that killed hundreds of Americans.
Asked what she thought of Collins’ views, Duckworth replied: “I’m disgusted. I would never, ever use Gold Star families, military men and women, or their families, as any pawn in any political game.”
She added that she’s “glad” Soleimani has “gone to meet his maker,” but added that “at the end of the day, because of the poor handling by the White House and the consequences of their actions … American forces are now under greater danger of attack from Iran and other hostile forces in the Middle East.”
Duckworth lost her right leg near the hip and her left leg below the knee in 2004 when her UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by Iraqi insurgents.
