Tulsi Gabbard: The Silenced Democratic Representative?

Tulsi Gabbard, Tulsi Gabbard, Tulsi Gabbard. Has she appeared on any media? No? Well, let’s discuss Representative Tulsia Gabbard from Hawaii. President Obama, after repeating 16 times that there would be no boots on the ground in Syria, is sending 50 special forces troops in Syria, USA Today reported before Halloween.

Though the Obama administration denied this was in fact “boots on the ground,” Democratic Representative Tulsia Gabbard had a different view on the direction of the U.S. conflict in Syria.

“The U.S. and the CIA are working to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad, While Russia, a longtime ally of Assad for decades now, is working to defend or uphold the Syrian government of Assad and This… this puts us in a position of a possible direct head-to-head conflict with Russia as long as the US and CIA continue down this path.”

This is not the first time Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard bucked her own party. Just prior to the first Democratic debate, CNN reported that Gabbard decried what was not an uncommon thought, that there were far too few debates.

“The prevailing message of that was that because I continued to call for more debates, that I should not go to the debate in Las Vegas. The issue here is not about me saying, ‘Boo hoo, I’m going to miss the party.’ The issue here is one of democracy and freedom of speech.”

Former Maryland Democratic Governor Martin O’Malley has also been calling for more Democratic debates.

This caused the Democratic vice chair and chairwoman to feud, as Debbie Wasserman Shultz claimed that her statements were false allegations meant to draw attention to Gabbard. She told Wolf Blitzer, according to the Washington Times, that the problem with her allegations of a disinvite was that everyone was “now talking about Tulsi Gabbard rather than concentrating” on the Democratic candidates. Maybe you have heard of Representative Gabbard? Well, she was not always seen in such a negative light.

The Atlantic did a story entitled “Hindus Are Thriving in America, but There’s Only One in Congress,” where it lauded and praised the diversity that was now in the U.S. House of Representatives. That was the first mention, after her election, of Hawaii Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard.

Then, the Washington Post wrote a favorable story about Gabbard entitled the “Democrat that Republicans love and the DNC can’t control.” It explained how the Hawaiian Democratic representative is seen as a hero in her native state, and won reelection this year with 79 percent of the vote, a percentage that does not seem to happen often in today’s political climate.

Tulsi Gabbard has been one of several people that spoke out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP) on two different occasions, in 2013 and 2015.

Democratic Representative Gabbard has seen press beyond her CNN interview with Wolf Blitzer, as HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher did manage get her a modicum of attention because Maher and Gabbard discussed what typically would come up at a Republican rally, why President Obama won’t use the word “Islamic terrorism.” This has six or so hits, where the Democratic congresswoman’s comments on Syria yields one at best.

It would appear that Representative Tulsi Gabbard receives some press only when it suits or serves certain agendas or criticisms that the mainstream wishes to push. Gabbard was issued criticism by fellow Democrats for her debate commentary, as Senator Harry Reid said he “didn’t know the Democratic congresswoman was running for president.”

Tulsi Gabbart, the representative from Hawaii, serves as an example of how it works. If the narrative you’re speaking fits the popular one, or the one they are seeking to push, it will get multiple hits. If not, then like Tulsi Gabbard, very few people will hear your thoughts on a national subject.

[Image under CC BY-SA 2.0 Via Flickr| Courtesy Of Senior Airman Orlando Corpuz| Resized]