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Tammy Duckworth demands 'diverse candidates' in Joe Biden cabinet, Internet asks 'isn't that racism'

Duckworth refuses to vote for any of Biden's White House nominees unless they are more representative, sparking furious debate online

President Joe Biden's nominations have been going at a slow pace, and now face great opposition, but not from Republicans. The newest Senators to oppose Biden's nominees are Democrats — Sen Tammy Duckworth from Illinois and Sen Mazie Hirono from Hawaii. The two Senators have announced their plans to oppose all of Biden's nominees who are White. Their goal is to see more Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in the cabinet.

"There's not a single AAPI in a Cabinet position. That's unacceptable," Sen. Duckworth told reporters. Biden pledged to build a diverse cabinet, and so far about 55% of his picks are non-White. However, that doesn't seem to be enough for Sen Duckworth, who was infuriated after comments from White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jen O'Malley Dillon. According to Duckworth, Dillon said, "well, you have Kamala Harris, we're very proud of her, you don't need anybody else." 

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Now, she has made her opposition public, pledging to vote against any and all cabinet candidates that aren't from a diverse background. How did she become such a vocal supporter of the AAPI community? That has to do with her heritage.

Who is Sen Duckworth?

Sen Duckworth was born to an American father in Bangkok. When she was 16, she moved to Hawaii and settled with her family, graduating from McKinley High School in Honolulu. In 1989, she graduated from the University of Hawaii at Manoa with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, in 1989, before completing an MA in International Affairs from George Washington University. 

Following in her father's footsteps, she enrolled in the United States Army Reserve Corps and was became a commissioned officer in 1992. She was deployed to Iraq in 2004 and was awarded a Purple Heart after losing her right leg near the hip and her left leg below the knee. She retired from military service in 2014 as a lieutenant colonel. She successfully ran for a seat in the House of Representatives in 2012, before being elected to the Senate in 2016. 

During her time in office, Sen Duckworth has been a strong advocate for veterans, small businesses, and family-friendly policies. Now, she is using her heritage as a key part of her fight for greater diversity in the White House. She reportedly gave the White House a list of "well-qualified AAPI" candidates "who never even got a phone call".

So far, only three Asian Americans have been nominated by Biden — Neera Tanden (Office of Management and Budget), Katherine Tai (Trade Representative), and Vivek Murthy (Chief Surgeon). No pacific islanders have been nominated, and Asian Americans have missed out on being picked for Secretary positions. It's that exclusion that Duckworth is protesting, but could have significant consequences.

While some groups have got behind her, others seem to be less happy with her opposition. Many people have taken to social media to criticize Duckworth for her stance, some even going as far as to call it 'racism'.

'That is flat out racist'

One user didn't mince their words, tweeting, "So, Duckworth wants to discriminate against capable candidates if the color of their skin or ethnicity doesn’t meet her wishes? Isn’t that just another form of racism?" Another user echoed that sentiment, saying, "Um,... that is a flat-out racist statement from Ms. Duckworth."

Another user said, "The quality of your mind is irrelevant. Your politics are irrelevant. If you have the wrong skin color or the wrong sexual orientation, Duckworth and Hirono are going to vote against you and that's all there is to it." One user called on her to resign, tweeting "@SenDuckworth Senator Duckworth, you need to resign because of your racist statement. MLK, said it best: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." "Tammy Duckworth just told me she’s voting NO on Biden nominees ..." I see that the Democrats are in the process of pissing away the greatest gift in American political history. 2022...here comes the spanking" tweeted another user. One user commented, "Wait...so are Democrats blackmailing other Democrats? What’s happening?"

With Biden eager to get a fully functioning cabinet, he could be willing to negotiate with Duckworth and Hirono. The White House is reportedly considering her proposal, but so far they have not issued a public statement.