by Tanada » Thu 13 Oct 2022, 14:20:21
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Gabbard endorses Trump-backed Republican in competitive Washington House race
Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on Wednesday endorsed Trump-backed Republican candidate Joe Kent in the competitive race for a southwestern Washington House seat.
Gabbard, who ran for president as a Democrat in 2020, announced on Tuesday that she was leaving the Democratic Party and has since put her support behind several candidates aligned with former President Trump, including Kent.
“My friend Joe Kent is a fighter,” Gabbard said in a new ad for Kent. “He’s dedicated his life to ensuring the safety, security and freedom of the American people and our country. With your vote, Joe’s going to go to Washington and work tirelessly to secure the border and bring you and your loved ones peace of mind.”
Kent, a former Green Beret, beat out Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) for the Republican nomination in the state’s August primary. The congresswoman, who represented Washington’s 3rd Congressional District for 12 years, was one of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach Trump.
After Herrera Beutler’s loss in the primary, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report moved the district from “solid Republican” to “lean Republican,” moving two notches to the left on the report’s scale.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
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Tulsi Gabbard says Democratic leaders 'foment a culture of fear' to keep people in lineFormer Democrat and U.S. House Representative Tulsi Gabbard slammed the Democratic Party leadership during an appearance on the "Joe Rogan Experience" Tuesday.
Former Democrat and U.S. House Representative Tulsi Gabbard criticized Democratic Party leadership Tuesday during an interview on the "Joe Rogan Experience."
"It's very spooky, and it's spooky how prevalent that mindset is and how many Democrats – not even just politicians, just people who are Democrats – how many people share that position that you should silence people that you don't agree with," Rogan said.
"It's such a foolish perspective and it plays out historically over, and over, and over again in a terrible way. I just don't understand why people don't learn that lesson."
Gabbard agreed with Rogan.
"I think that the Democratic Party leaders, people like Hillary Clinton, people who have been in charge for a very long time foment this kind of culture of fear and like ‘hey if you go against us, you’re dead, you're on the sh*t list,'" Gabbard said.
"You have, kind of the very loud activists who don't represent I think even the majority of the Democratic Party, but the AOCs of the world who are almost like these radical religious zealots and they are ideologues and whatever they choose is the battle of the day, if you are against them on that, forget it, you're done."
President Trump defended Gabbard against claims by Hillary Clinton that she was being groomed by Russia to be a third-party 2020 presidential candidate.
Gabbard has long been critical of the Democratic Party leadership. In a video posted to Instagram Tuesday, she accused them of "stoking anti-white racism" and undermining the nation's law enforcement. Gabbard also described the Democratic establishment as "warmongers" and has been critical of the leadership of both political parties for supporting interventional foreign polices abroad.
Gabbard noted that 57 House Republicans voted against sending another $40 billion in military aid to Ukraine while not one Democrat did. During the podcast, Gabbard warned that the world is closer to nuclear conflict than most people realize and highlighted New York City's public service announcement instructing people how to respond to a potential nuclear attack.
Gabbard, a 41-year-old combat veteran who is progressive on many issues, was once viewed as a rising star within the Democratic Party. She was endorsed by then-President Barack Obama when she first ran for Congress and was invited to speak at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. However, since breaking with the party on foreign policy and clashing with prominent progressives such as then Sen. Kamala Haris, D-Calif., the media and Democratic establishment has lambasted her, accusing the U.S. combat veteran of being a Russian asset without any evidence.
Tulsi Gabbard is leaving the Democratic Party.
The former member of Congress, having represented Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District from 2013 to 2021, announced her move on Twitter early Tuesday.
“I can no longer remain in today’s Democratic Party that is now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue & stoke anti-white racism,” Gabbard tweeted.
“I believe in a government that is of the people, by the people and for the people. Unfortunately, today’s Democratic Party does not. Instead, it stands for a government that is of, by and for the powerful elite,” Gabbard continued. “I’m calling on my fellow common sense, independent-minded Democrats to join me in leaving the Democratic Party.”
In a Twitter thread containing the announcement, Gabbard did not say whether she plans to become a Republican or join a competing political affiliation.
Representatives for Gabbard did not immediately respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment.
Gabbard, who served in the Army National Guard in the 2000s, made the announcement in conjunction with the debut episode of a podcast she is hosting.
She was a member of the large field of candidates competing for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination and threw her support behind eventual nominee Joe Biden as she left that race in March 2020.
It will be interesting to watch and see if it happens, she has big backers though.