Democratic presidential hopeful Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, on Friday, took to Twitter to speak out against former first lady, secretary of state, and Democratic nominee for president Hillary Clinton following her suggestion that Gabbard was being groomed by Russia to run as a third-party candidate for president.
“Great! Thank you @HillaryClinton,” Gabbard tweeted Friday. “You, the queen of warmongers, embodiment of corruption, and personification of the rot that has sickened the Democratic Party for so long, have finally come out from behind the curtain.”
In follow-up tweets, Gabbard went on to state that there had been a concerted effort to destroy her candidacy in the 2020 Democratic primary, and charged that Clinton had been behind the effort.
“Now we know — it was always you, through your proxies and powerful allies in the corporate media and war machine, afraid of the threat I pose,” Gabbard claimed.
Gabbard also seemed to urge Clinton to once again enter the race for president, as she claimed the race was actually already between her and the former secretary of state. Notably, President Donald Trump has similarly suggested that Clinton join the still-crowded Democratic Party’s race for the 2020 nomination. His reason, however, was so that she could steal the race from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who has, in recent weeks, emerged as a solid front runner.
… powerful allies in the corporate media and war machine, afraid of the threat I pose.
It’s now clear that this primary is between you and me. Don’t cowardly hide behind your proxies. Join the race directly.
— Tulsi Gabbard ? (@TulsiGabbard) October 18, 2019
According to CNN’s Dan Merica, a Clinton spokesperson responded to Gabbard’s claims in a statement that seemed to double down on Clinton’s previous allegations.
Clinton spokesman Nick Merrill responds to Gabbard’s response/thread: “Divisive language filled with vitriol and conspiracy theories? Can’t imagine a better proof point than this.” https://t.co/MofEisUVrf
— Dan Merica (@merica) October 18, 2019
It’s not the first time that Gabbard has mentioned Clinton. At Tuesday night’s Democratic primary debate hosted by The New York Times and CNN, Gabbard remarked that there was not much that she agreed with Clinton, however she said she agreed when the former presidential candidate said she believed abortion should be “safe, legal, and rare,” according to a debate recap from The Washington Post .
As The Inquisitr reported earlier Friday, Clinton made the comments on a podcast, Campaign HQ with David Plouffe, and said that she believed there was a candidate running in the primary race that Russia was grooming for a third-party run. Clinton notably did not mention Gabbard by name during her marks, though a spokesperson would later confirm that Clinton was talking about the Hawaii representative.
Clinton noted that Russian bot accounts on social media, known for sharing pro-Trump messages and intentionally divisive content, have seemingly taken a liking to Gabbard. Clinton, however, noted that she believed that Green Party candidate Jill Stein played the role of Russian asset during the 2016 election. Clinton said she believed that Stein could play the role again in the 2020 election.
Per RealClearPolitics , Gabbard is currently polling with 1.2 percent of support. In the lead in the race is former Vice President Joe Biden, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.