Gabbard, who is just one of 12 candidates expected to appear on the Ohio stage on October 15, issued an early morning statement pointing out that the DNC and the corporate media banded together during the 2016 presidential election to refuse then-candidate Bernie Sanders the Democratic nomination.
— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) October 10, 2019
And now, according to the Hawaii native, the pair are once again joining forces ahead of the 2020 election to rig the process “against the American people in the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada.”
“They are attempting to replace the roles of voters in the early states, using polling and other arbitrary methods which are not transparent or democratic, and holding so-called debates which are not debates at all but rather commercialized reality television meant to entertain, not inform or enlighten,” reads the release. “In short, the DNC and corporate media are trying to hijack the entire election process.”
“In order to bring attention to this serious threat to our democracy, and ensure your voice is heard, I am giving serious consideration to boycotting the next debate on October 15th,” the statement continues, adding that an official decision on whether or not Gabbard will ditch the debate stage is expected to come “within the next few days.”
The congresswoman’s stance was later cheered on by fellow presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, who tweeted out that Gabbard “is absolutely correct,” and that she has “great respect for Tulsi for saying such inconvenient truth.”
However, not everyone is taking warmly to Gabbard’s remarks. New York Magazine writer Jonathan Chait tweeted out that Gabbard’s commentary only offers supporting evidence to insider claims that she is actually trying to “divide the [Democratic] party and help Trump.”
— Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) October 10, 2019
Elsewhere, writer Gary Legum agreed that the debates are “meant to entertain more than inform,” but he ultimately believed that Gabbard’s efforts were a “pathetic and desperate gambit.”
Only time will tell if Gabbard does truly intend to bow out of the debate.
Gabbard was the last candidate to qualify for the Ohio debate in late September after she managed to receive contributions from 130,000 unique donors and register at 2% or more in four DNC-approved polls. She previously failed to meet similar requirements when it came time to qualify for the September debate in Houston, Texas.
