Former Representative Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), who left the Democratic Party in 2022, has officially endorsed former President Donald Trump.
This endorsement follows Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a former independent presidential candidate and another Democrat defector, who also expressed support for Trump.
Gabbard, a military veteran, revealed her endorsement during Trump’s appearance at a National Guard conference in Detroit, Michigan.
I was a Democrat for over 20 years. Today, I endorsed Donald Trump for President. WATCH to hear why: pic.twitter.com/lwA8FYFx8h
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) August 26, 2024
The endorsement was made just hours after Trump participated in a wreath-laying ceremony for the 13 U.S. soldiers who died as a result of the Biden administration’s flawed withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
During the event, Trump introduced Gabbard, referring to the former Democratic congresswoman as “a great person.”
“She’s a special person,” Trump said of Gabbard. “She’s got great common sense, great spirit. She loves our country and loves the people in this room.”
It is notable that Gabbard ran for president as a Democrat in 2020.
“I am proud to stand before you today, whether you’re a Democrat, Republican or an independent,” Gabbard said.
Gabbard stated that Americans who desire global peace should vote for Trump this November.
“If you love our country, as I do, if you cherish peace and freedom, as we do, I invite you to join me in doing all that we can to save our country and elect President Donald J. Trump and send him back to the White House to do the tough work of saving our country and serving the people,” she added.
Gabbard’s endorsement of the former president follows his enlistment of her to help him prepare for his debate against Vice President Kamala Harris.
During the 2020 Democratic National Convention presidential debates, the former Democratic Hawaiian congresswoman criticized Harris for her record as California’s attorney general.
“Sen. Harris says she’s proud of her record as a prosecutor and that she’ll be a prosecutor president, but I’m deeply concerned about this record,” Gabbard said back then.
“There are too many examples to cite, but she put over 1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana,” she added.
At the Detroit conference, Gabbard praised Trump’s military record and his diplomatic efforts.
She said Trump “understands the grave responsibility that a president and commander-in-chief bears for every single one of our lives, whether you’re a soldier, you’re an airman, a Marine sailor or a Coastie, he keeps us in his heart, in the decisions that he makes.”
“We saw this through his first term in the presidency, when he not only didn’t start any new wars, he took action to de-escalate and prevent wars,” Gabbard continued. “He exercised the courage that we expect from our commander-in-chief in exhausting all measures of diplomacy, having the courage to meet with adversaries, dictators, allies and partners alike in the pursuit of peace, seeing war as a last resort.”
Before entering politics in 2012, Gabbard served two tours in the Middle East as a member of the Hawaii Army National Guard, according to the New York Post.
