When it comes to choosing a vice president, Joe Biden has different reasons for selecting each co…

When it comes to choosing a vice president, Joe BidenJoe BidenTrump campaign cancels ad buys to review messaging strategy: reportNunes declines to answer if he received information from Ukraine lawmaker meant to damage BidenPoll: Plurality of ‘Gen Z’ voters say they see more political ads from Trump than BidenMORE has different reasons for selecting each contender. 
Biden likes Sen. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenFox’s Perino says Biden won’t pick Susan Rice because of fire from rightShould Biden win, why do some assume he’ll only serve one term?The Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden closes in on vice presidential pickMOREs (D-Mass.) ideas and proposals. He admires Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala Devi HarrisOVERNIGHT ENERGY: EPA rule extends life of toxic coal ash ponds | Flint class action suit against Mich. officials can proceed, court rules | Senate Democrats introduce environmental justice billSenate Democrats introduce environmental justice bill Fox’s Perino says Biden won’t pick Susan Rice because of fire from rightMOREs (D-Calif.) lawyerly straightforwardness and moxie. Susan Rice, President Obamas former national security adviser, worked alongside him in the White House and Biden has seen her work ethic up close. 
But Sen. Tammy DuckworthLadda (Tammy) Tammy DuckworthOVERNIGHT ENERGY: EPA rule extends life of toxic coal ash ponds | Flint class action suit against Mich. officials can proceed, court rules | Senate Democrats introduce environmental justice billSenate Democrats introduce environmental justice bill GOP lawmaker says he will oppose any attempts to delay electionMORE represents something close to Bidens heart: Shes an American hero. 
The Illinois Democrat, a veteran who lost both legs in the Iraq war and received the Purple Heart, is on Biden’s shortlist. And some in Bidenworld who know the former vice president well say Duckworth is exactly the kind of partner who is well-suited to the former vice president. 
Anyone who knows him well knows what the United States military means to him, said one confidant. And the fact of the matter is, she doesn’t just check the boxes, she has an incredible story and it represents not only who the vice president is at his core but the narrative he’s been talking about since his campaign began.
You could very easily see why shes in contention for this job, the confidant added. 
Sen. Dick DurbinRichard (Dick) Joseph DurbinSchumer: Trump should want COVID-19 deal to help GOP election chancesRepublican senators revolt over coronavirus proposalVOA visa decision could hobble Venezuela coverageMORE, the senior senator from Illinois, said he supports Duckworth being named Bidens running mate, and added that he has told this to Bidens team.
Shes an incredible story, life story, Durbin said in an interview. Disabled veteran. Amazing determination. Whos remade her life and now serves in the Senate. She is a symbol of success for the disability community. 
She has a lot of things going for her, the senator added. She carries counties in Illinois that I dont because people respect her military credentials.
Durbin, who said he knows Duckworth has been in the mix for awhile on Bidens shortlist, noted that writers and other political leaders have touted Duckworth to him. 
A former senator, Democratic senator, contacted me last week and said shes a great choice, he added. Shes a face of the veteran community, disability community, Asian-American community. She has a lot of things going for her. 
Biden, who has committed to selecting a woman as his running mate, said this week he would make a decision next week. 
On Thursday, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker told Yahoo News that he has pushed Biden to pick Duckworth, saying a war hero would make a terrific vice president of the United States.
Biden and Duckworth got to know each other after she introduced his late son, Beau, at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver. She continued to grow closer with both Biden and his wife, Jill, when she worked in the Obama administration as an assistant secretary in the Department of Veterans Affairs as the Bidens became involved in policies and issues concerning veterans. 
Duckworth was named the most effective freshman Democratic senator in the 115th Congress by the Center for Effective Lawmaking, a partnership between Vanderbilt University and the University of Virginia. 
She got three of her 45 sponsored bills signed into law in the last Congress, including the Veteran Small Business Enhancement Act of 2018, which allows veteran-owned small businesses to receive surplus property owned by the federal government.
But Duckworth’s supporters say her life story is much more than her experiences during combat. 
They point out her family was on food stamps when it moved to Hawaii when Duckworth was in high school. She sometimes fainted from hunger in school and saved meals to share with her parents.
Despite such hardships, Duckworth has tried to stay joyful and humorous, which supporters compare to Biden’s reputation as a “happy warrior.
But she also proved she could battle against President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump campaign cancels ad buys to review messaging strategy: reportNunes declines to answer if he received information from Ukraine lawmaker meant to damage BidenPoll: Plurality of ‘Gen Z’ voters say they see more political ads from Trump than BidenMORE earlier this month after she called the president and conservative television host Tucker CarlsonTucker CarlsonFox’s Perino says Biden won’t pick Susan Rice because of fire from rightTrump again targets Fox: ‘They totally forgot who got them where they are’New Jersey gym owners arrested for defying coronavirus shutdown orderMORE self-serving insecure men after they publicly questioned her patriotism. 
The fight began after Duckworth called for a national dialogue over the removal of statues of founding fathers including President George Washington, who owned slaves.  
Carlson accused her of being one of the Democrats who hate America and later called her a coward.
Biden went on the attack, calling it disgusting, sickening of Trump and his allies to use such language against Duckworth, and a reflection of the depravity of whats going on in the White House right now. 
If she doesnt make the cut for Bidens running mate, Democrats say, she will undoubtedly be considered for cabinet posts. 
Regardless of how the veepstakes turn out for Senator Duckworth, I think most Democrats would expect her to be a part of a Biden cabinet in some way, said Democratic strategist Joel Payne. Senator Duckworth has a very compelling personal narrative and obviously she is a real life badass. 
Durbin added, I dont want her to leave the Senate.
But if shes going to leave it, let her be vice president, he said.