PHILADELPHIA — Four years ago, Iraq War veteran Rep. Tammy Duckworth used her address at the Democratic National Convention to warn of how disastrous Republican plans for foreign policy and veterans programs would be.

This time, she says the threat is even worse.

"(Republican presidential nominee) Donald Trump is calling for a foreign power to conduct espionage against the United States," she told Military Times on the eve of her convention speech Thursday night. "He's talking about renegotiating the Geneva Convention.

"It's astounding that someone who is aspiring to be commander in chief would speak so cavalierly. I am seriously concerned when someone in the running to be commander in chief wants to pull out of NATO."

Trump has said he may impose conditions before coming to the aid of NATO allies, but has stopped short of advocating the U.S. leave the alliance. Security experts, however, say this move would undermine the mutual defense agreement at NATO's core.

Duckworth is running against Republican and fellow veteran Sen. Mark Kirk for an Illinois Senate seat this fall, and has already joined a lengthy list of Democratic candidates using the threat of a Trump presidency to bolster their local chances.

Although Kirk has distanced himself from Trump (and found himself in several public name-calling matches with the controversial business mogul), Duckworth this week portrayed both men as part of the same problem: insensitivity toward the challenges facing troops and willful ignorance of how to make the world safer.

"As much as I can (this fall), I'll be out there speaking about the importance of international alliances, how they keep us safe," Duckworth said. "We have a part to play as leader of the free world, and we are stronger when we play that part."

Her appearance on the speaking slate for the final night of the Democratic convention is a high-profile boost for her Senate chances, one of several up-for-grabs races the party must win to retake control of that chamber.

Duckworth, who lost both her legs when her Black Hawk helicopter was shot down in Iraq in 2004, said she'll touch on her military service in the speech but also broaden the message to discuss how public assistance programs helped start her life as a public servant.

"I'll be talking about my family story of struggle, the fact that I was on public assistance as a child, and if it were not for public schools and some of the assistance I received, I never would have been able to join the military," she said. "I would have dropped out of high school instead."

Duckworth is expected to speak early Thursday evening, making her the sixth female veteran to address the crowd at the weeklong convention. Later in the evening, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will formally accept her party's nomination and outline her own national security criticism of Trump.

Leo Shane III covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He can be reached at lshane@militarytimes.com.

Share:
In Other News
Load More