President Barack Obama, Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Endorse Tammy Duckworth

Press Release

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. are endorsing Tammy Duckworth in her campaign for U.S. Senate, the campaign announced today. Duckworth is challenging incumbent Republican Senator Mark Kirk for the Illinois Senate seat once held by the President. Duckworth served in the Obama Administration as as assistant secretary in the Department of Veterans Affairs from 2009 until departing to run for Congress in 2011. The race is routinely rated as the most competitive in the country. Please see the following statements:

Statement from President Barack Obama:
I'm proud to support Tammy Duckworth for the seat I once held in the United States Senate. Few people fight as passionately for our veterans as Tammy. Soon after I was first elected President, I asked her to join my administration and serve her fellow veterans at the VA. She served with purpose and distinction -- service that continued when she ran for Congress and won. And I was proud to sign one of Tammy's signature pieces of legislation -- the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention Act -- into law.

Tammy Duckworth is already a champion for her fellow veterans. And in the United States Senate, Tammy Duckworth will continue to be a champion for her fellow working families from Illinois. She'll build on six straight years of job growth by making sure folks' hard work is rewarded with an affordable college education and retirement security. That's because Tammy Duckworth knows that the best way to strengthen the middle class is by building an economy that works not just for a few -- but for all of us.

Statement from Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.:
When her nation calls, Tammy Duckworth answers, and I'm proud to support her in this next mission: running for the U.S. Senate. Tammy is a fighter, and I know she'll bring that attitude to bear on behalf of Illinois working families. She supports programs that make college more affordable, including free community college for deserving students, and that's the kind of voice we need in the US Senate. Tammy and I share a belief that the investments we make in our people are never hand-outs, they are pathways to opportunity and the mark of a great nation.

Statement from Tammy Duckworth:
I'm deeply honored to receive the endorsements of President Obama and Vice President Biden. I am profoundly grateful that President Obama recognized my commitment to serve my fellow Veterans, and gave me the opportunity to do so in the earliest days of his Administration.

As this campaign continues, I will be proud to stand alongside President Obama and Vice President Biden and will strive to build on their legacy of fighting to strengthen the middle class and working to build an economy that provides opportunity for all, not just those at the top.

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