As Hawaii is my second home, I am familiar with its whacky politics. It is the bluest of blue states, and if you want to be elected to practically any office, your chances of being elected as a Republican are somewhere between 0 and 1%. Not good.
It goes back to the group of Republicans who overthrew Queen Liliuokalani in 1896. Hawaii has been a devoted liberal Democrat stronghold ever since.
Thus, any candidate for office must run as a Democrat if he or she hopes to win. This one-party dynamic leads to paradoxical situations whereby a conservative can be elected to office if his or her party affiliation is Democrat.
Such is the case with Tulsi Gabbard, Democrat House member, representing Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District, which covers the entire state except urban Honolulu (Hawaii has only two House seats).
I consider Tulsi a patriotic conservative. She is an Army officer in the Hawaii National Guard and has served two tours in Iraq, yet she is a Democrat. A Dino, if you will.
Gabbard’s newest cause is halting the US arming and funding of terrorists in Syria. She confirms that indeed, as has been reported widely, that Barack Hussein’s administration is, in fact, supplying arms and funding for terrorist organizations, including ISIS, al-Qaeda, and al-Nusra.
If you or I gave money, weapons or support to al-Qaeda or ISIS, we would be thrown in jail. Why does our gov get a free pass on this?
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) December 10, 2016
Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said on Twitter Saturday that the United States is funding and arming Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, according to The Daily Caller.
“If you or I gave money, weapons or support to al-Qaeda or ISIS, we would be thrown in jail. Why does our gov get a free pass on this?,” the congresswoman from Hawaii wrote. Gabbard is a U.S. Army veteran and a member of the House Committees on Foreign Affairs and Armed Services.
She introduced the Stop Arming Terrorists Act Thursday. While introducing the bill, Gabbard cited New York Times and Wall Street Journal articles that said the rebels the U.S. is supporting in Syria are allied with Al-Nusra, an Al-Qeada affiliate.
Members of Liwa (brigade) Hamzah, a newly formed Islamist brigade from the Syrian eastern city of Deir Ezzor, hold flags of Jebhat al-Nusra as they take part in a rally in the centre of the city to announce their formation on February 25, 2013. Syria’s opposition and foreign powers hold crucial talks in Rome with Washington suggesting it is ready to boost support to rebels in their struggle against President Bashar al-Assad. AFP PHOTO/ZAC BAILLIE/Getty Images
“The CIA has also been funneling weapons and money through Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and others who provide direct and indirect support to groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda,” Gabbard said. Gabbard’s claim is backed up by a speech former secretary of state Hillary Clinton delivered to Goldman Sachs. Clinton said Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates are funding Jihadists in Syria.
“This madness must end. We must stop arming terrorists,” Gabbard said. Her bill will prohibit any federal agency from supporting a terrorist group or funneling support through other countries that directly or indirectly support terrorists.
A few weeks ago Gabbard met with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower. Her bill is co-sponsored by Trump ally California Rep. Dana Rohrabacher.
She said on CNN Friday that she’s glad that Trump’s “talking about ending our country’s interventionist regime change policies.”
