Transcript: Sen. Tammy Duckworth on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Sept. 7, 2025
The following is the transcription of an interview with Senator Tammy Duckworth, Democrat of Illinois, who was broadcast on “Face The Nation with Margaret Brennan” on September 7, 2025.
Margaret Brennan: And we are now joined by Democrat Senator Tammy Duckworth. She joins us this morning from Schaumburg, Illinois. Hello to you, senator.
Senator Tammy Duckworth: Hello.
Margaret Brennan: So you assisted, if I understand, a demonstration yesterday in Chicago where thousands of people were on the street to protest against President Trump’s wish to send immigration agents. I know he also posted on social networks, which suggests that the troops will enter. Quote: “Chicago is about to find out why this is called the Ministry of War.” Vice-president Vance says that it is not planned to send troops. Do you have a concrete indication now that it is planned to do so?
Sénable Duckworth: Clearly SELLIONS The President of the United States has essentially declared war on a big city of his own nation. It’s not normal, Margaret. It is not acceptable behavior. No, we have no indication of their preparation to send troops to Chicago. In fact, I was at the base of Great Lakes yesterday, a naval training base, and they were able to confirm that the only assistance that was invited to provide is just an office space for ice, but that no barracks, no detention facilities, none of this is requested or prepared to support the troops in Chicago.
Margaret Brennan: So, then is it right, you know, the conversation of garbage cans on social networks? When you say he declares war, is it the language in the cheek?
Sénable Duckworth: I think he is reversing the Ministry of Defense of the Ministry of War, and did he not just say that Chicago will discover what it means to be at war? I do not take what the President of the United States says very seriously, because it is the respect you need to give to the office. And if that is what he declares, then let me specify, it would be an illegal order to declare war on a big city, any city in the United States, by the President of the United States.
Margaret Brennan: Senator, I know that you have just mentioned that you went to the Naval Training Station of the Great Lakes, I should say, and you said that the military management said that they would only obtain offices, the ice cannot bring deadly ammunition and that the resources would not be diverted from the military training. So, all this together, have you pushed a sigh of relief and say that it will not have a real impact on the army?
Sénable Duckworth: Well, we will make sure that there is no impact on the army. We must make sure that, as, you know, the naval training base of the Great Lakes is the place where each recruit of the American navy passes to obtain this basic training, then later, advanced training. We must make sure that not a single dollar, not a single penny of the resources they have that should be – which should be oriented towards the training of our nation’s sailors and prepare them to dare – do their job, none of these money must be diverted in order to support the ice or one of the political efforts of Donald Trump, you know, theater efforts. We have to focus on ensuring that we are moving forward the best sailors that we can possibly get out of the base.
Margaret Brennan: So, in terms of the way the Democrats respond to this, this rhetoric, the chicago tribune defeated Governor Pritzker for his threats, to quote: “Do not hold their arms crossed” if the guard has entered. They wrote: “What does this threat really mean”, how about a conversation before action or the answer? It seems that there is a lot of tension here. Is there the opportunity to work with the administration to avoid aggravating this?
Senable Duckworth: Well, they did not respond to any of our requests. I mean, I will give you a very concrete example. Senator Durbin, myself, Senator Schneider-Congres Schneider, sent requests to DHS to ask them to explain what you are going to do exactly in the big lakes? And can we come and look at your installation so that we better understand what your operations are? And they answered, no, you can’t. And in fact, gave its staff the day off the day we went to get the facilities, and locked the doors and left the base. Basically, they fled the base. It is not the action of someone who does something legal or of which they are proud. They literally gave the people on leave, locked the doors and left. Now the navy has allowed us on the post. They allowed us to visit the outside of the establishment and also where they stored non -lethal ammunition. But DHS did not arise. And we have certainly sent several requests for information to the administration on what they plan to do. Who do they bring to Chicago? Do they plan to bring the National Guard? They have nothing, none of that. They did not even contact the local police to try to coordinate. You know, if they were really, really interested in fighting crime, then they would work with local police and ask them, what do you need? What help do you need? And we have not obtained any communication or comment from the administration, anything.
Margaret Brennan: I want to ask you in your role of armed services on what is an important geopolitical meeting last week. You have had many American opponents gathering together. Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Kim Jong one from North Korea, all in Beijing. And China and Russia seem to deepen their work together. What do you think is the signal in the United States here?
Sénable Duckworth: The signal in the United States is exactly what, you know, these authoritarian diets want to send, namely that they are the new world power, that America loses its field and that they have a total lack of respect for the United States. I think it was very, very clear, and that, you know, that does not escape me, the fact that this meeting has occurred, which humiliated for Donald Trump, he immediately replied saying, well, so I will rename the Ministry of Defense of the Ministry of War and declare war in Chicago. This is what Donald Trump does when something bad happens to him in the news cycle, or when the victims of Epstein come together and have a very emotional press conference, he changes the subject and distracts us by saying things like, I will send ice to Chicago, I will do this. The American people cannot be fooled. We cannot allow him to distract ourselves from what is really going on, that is to say, it is a man who has led our economy to a point where now there are more unemployed than there are jobs. You know, we do not sell our agricultural products abroad. Our opponents are united against us.
Margaret Brennan: Well, the unemployment rate is still low, but I hear you on a lower than expected employment number. Very quickly, there were military measures taken in the American court by the Trump administration. The vice-president Vance said that “the death of the members of the cartel who poison our fellow citizens is the highest and the best use of our soldiers”. He spoke of a strike on an alleged drug boat, off the coast of Venezuela. What do you do with this strength show?
Sénable Duckworth: It was an illegal – it was an illegal decision of the Trump administration. There is one thing called a regular procedure in this country, and that had to happen. And the fact that this happened in international orders – in international waters actually opens up Americans to a similar action by our opponents. You just – we just talked about Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping and come together and show ourselves a show of strength against the United States. Well, there is nothing now to prevent them from doing something like that against Americans in international waters. And it could be civilians, and they could say, what do you know? They were drug boats. We are just going to move forward and sauté them out of the water. You are – it defines a priority here that endangers the Americans.
Margaret Brennan: Senator Duckworth, thank you for your time this morning. We will be back.
