Duckworth shines bright in first term

This is a response to "Ready for Duckworth Rematch?" published in the Daily Herald on Feb. 16. I refer to comments made by the Republican challengers Ms. Goel and Mr. Kaifesh.

Both state the Affordable Care Act should help unseat Ms. Duckworth. Congresswoman Duckworth did not vote for the ACA (she was not in Congress then). To help constituents sort out the initial signup period for the ACA, Ms. Duckworth held several workshops to answer questions. She has also stated that the ACA should not inhibit businesses from creating jobs.

Regarding the ACA, Mr. Kaifesh states "the more they find out, the gloomier it gets." Any program of this magnitude is bound to have problems. The CTA's Ventra card rollout was completely botched despite it being minuscule compared to the ACA.

Ms. Goel states she is a first-generation Indian-American and "I am a woman and a minority" without mentioning she does not live in the district.

Ms. Duckworth's record over the last 18 months is exceptional for a first term, especially considering the House is controlled by Republicans. Ms. Duckworth believes in short-term tax incentives for small businesses that create jobs and hire unemployed workers. And she believes programs that give tax credits to hire veterans should be expanded.

Ms. Duckworth is a strong advocate for reforming our complicated tax system. As a former small-businessman, I can say simplifying taxes for small businesses will definitely help create jobs.

Congresswoman Duckworth advocated for approval of the Elgin-O'Hare expansion, thus creating approximately 60,000 direct and indirect jobs over the next few years. She also co-sponsored and advocated for a national infrastructure bank to bring similar projects to Illinois. She has an extremely good first-term record. In my opinion, this extraordinary woman deserves a second term.

Larry Hamsing

Streamwood