Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii is a rising star in the Democratic Party, but she has increasingly been at odds with President Barack Obama on Syria and national security.
The New York Times,
in a feature published Saturday, notes that since the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris, Gabbard has become more of a critic of Obama's policies.
The 34-year-old combat veteran has ramped up her argument that Syrian President Bashar Assad should be left in power to help tamp down the Islamic State (ISIS). She has introduced legislation to defund efforts by the United States to overthrow Assad.
She also voted with Republicans to toughen screening of Syrian refugees – despite a veto threat from Obama.
"My responsibility is to the people of Hawaii and the American people to stand up and fight for what is right and what is in the best interest of our country," she told the Times. "That has nothing to do with party politics."
Gabbard, a vice chair of the Democratic National Committee also has publicly denounced chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz's decision to limit the number of Democratic debates. She was disinvited from the first Democratic debate, https://www.newsmax.com/Politics/tulsi-gabbarad-disinvited-presidential-debate-dnc/2015/10/12/id/695785/ though the party denied if was because of her criticism.
She gets praise from both sides of the aisle, with Rep. Steve Israel, a Democrat from New York saying, "You couldn’t get a better role model. She reflected the diversity of the caucus and at the same time had amazing credibility on the issue of national security."
Rep. Kevin McArthy of California, who is his party's majority leader, said, "I think she has an opportunity to be a great leader."
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.