More on Tulsi ditching the democrats
Tulsi Gabbard’s ditches the Dem party in an open video address
A few comments first. For starters, I lost any trust I might have had for Tulsi Gabbard when she endorsed that ultra-fake liberal Bernie Sanders. Second, I have taken the decision not to comment on US internal politics on this blog, but in this case I think that rather than seeing Gabbard’s video as an internal US politics phenomenon, I see it as a sign of the amazing state of decay of the USA as a nation: when a (supposed) left liberal takes on the talking points of (supposed) conservatives, something major is happening, especially when you have a (supposed) liberal President in the White House. Finally, Gabbard is way, waaaaaaaay too smart not to see that the Dem Party is a political Titanic and no matter how loud the “propaganda orchestra” plays, that ship is sinking very, very fast. Time to leave it!
One more thing: I am willing to bet that Gabbard is planning to run for President in 2024 and considering the freak show on the Dem party side, her real opponent will be either Trump or Desantis. But look at her talking points – they are conservative through and through, which means that her running can takes votes away from the GOP candidates. Thus it is possible that while ostentatiously breaking away from the Dem party and the freaks running it, she will end up taking just enough votes on the right to give the victory to the Neocons running the Dem party (the GOP is also run by Neocons known as RINOs – Republican In Name Only).
These are just possibilities, and only time will show if Gabbard has had a real change of heart. She did not apologize for being a loyal Sanders/Biden supporter, but at least she did accurately describe the Dem party for what it is: an profoundly evil gang of freaks run by warmongering, racist, Neocon puppeteers.
Again, I am not interested in internal US politics which I describe as a useless fistfight between pilots for the control of a flight deck in an aircraft with no engines or even wings! However, the fact that the pilots are fighting shows that they realize that their situation is desperate. Can you recall another instance of a well-known politicians slamming the door on his/her party while that party controls both Congress and the White House?
Full speech
From the comments
Is irrelevant because as Noam Chomsky said the system is stuck that no matter who’s the American president the threat of American foreign policy will be the same.I personally despise Democratic party voters because most of them are actually quite smart people and educated people who mage a conscious decision to switch off their brains and consciences to vote for whatever utterly malignant candidate their party comes up with, making them hypocrites far beyond the usual loyal Republican voter, on average neither particularly intelligent nor well educated, which makes them just ignorant and politically scammable.
Tulsi voted to increase the 2018 defense budget. Very enlightened.She says “when it come to the war against terrorists, I’m a hawk”.
The war on terror bullshit has been used to perpetuate illegal and and immoral wars. By far, the biggest terrorist is USA.
She is in favor of drone strikes against “terrorists” (wherein civilians get killed).
She participated in the Iraq war as soldier in which millions of Iraqis died. Not too cool.
She endorsed Bernie Sanders who has voted for many wars including the bombing of Serbia.
As I have already said, she voted for funding for Guantanamo.
She spoke at a conference held by an organization that favors West Bank settlements.
She met with Adelson.
On the hand, she is good looking and speaks in a very sexy voice.
Another view
One min you’re saying that regime change wars make USians less safe and the next you say you fought to protect First Amendment (in your anti BDS gobbledygook video that contains no crit of Israel). You seem set to discredit the anti war position. Are you? https://t.co/wnA3Wx2iyr
— Sam Husseini (@samhusseini) July 28, 2019
.
As I said, no one gets into congress unless they swear fealty to Israel.
Tulsi Gabbard tries to defend anti-Palestinian vote 29 July 2019
Congress member Tulsi Gabbard is feeling the heat over her vote last week in favor of a resolution that misrepresents and harshly condemns the nonviolent BDS – boycott, divestment and sanctions – movement for Palestinian rights.
The Hawaii Democrat, a candidate for her party’s presidential nomination, posted a video on Twitter on Saturday trying to spin her vote for HR 246 as a defense of free speechm
Watch this for why I voted for HRes246 and why I'll always defend our right to free speech --> https://t.co/ov6n9wGNVW #TULSI2020 pic.twitter.com/deWdFJSGTv
— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) July 28, 2019
She acknowledges receiving messages via social media “asking for more information about why I voted the way I did.”
She asserts that the resolution “does not in any way limit or hinder our First Amendment rights.”Gabbard also pledges to continue opposing any legislation to “restrict freedom of speech by imposing legal penalties against those who participate in the BDS movement.”
She notes that she is cosponsoring Representative Ilhan Omar’s resolution HR 496, which backs the right to engage in political boycotts.
Those are laudable positions, but they are undermined by Gabbard’s vote for a resolution that is a stepping stone towards more state and federal anti-BDS laws.
Israel and its lobby warmly welcomed HR 246, undoubtedly seeing it as a clear victory in their ongoing effort to pass laws criminalizing BDS activism.
Based on lies”
Gabbard’s reasoning falls apart further when she explains why she backed the resolution in the first place.
“I voted for HR 246 because I support a two-state solution that provides for the rights of both Israel and Palestine to exist and for their people to live in peace with security,” Gabbard says.
“I don’t believe BDS is the way to accomplish that.”
(Note: In a written version of her statement, she is more nuanced, stating, “I don’t believe the BDS movement is the only or best way to accomplish that.”)
But Gabbard does not explain why a nonviolent movement, modeled on the one that helped end apartheid in South Africa, is harmful, or what her approach is to ending decades of Israeli military occupation and settler-colonization of Palestinian land.
Does she propose to continue the decades-old US and international policy of doing nothing, and even rewarding Israel, as it commits these crimes?
Platitudes about a two-state solution that equate the military occupier with an occupied people can’t hide the lack of a principled position.
In a message to supporters Monday, Omar Barghouti, the BDS movement cofounder singled out for criticism in HR 246, hit back at the House of Representatives for passing “a McCarthyite, anti-Palestinian resolution.”
“The resolution, based on lies, passed while Israeli military bulldozers were busy demolishing tens of Palestinian homes in occupied East Jerusalem,” Barghouti added.
Just 17 members of Congress voted against the resolution, while 398 backed it.
HR 246 was an opportunity for Gabbard to demonstrate clearly that she stands against Israel’s violations of Palestinian rights and in solidarity with people struggling for liberation.
I encourage y’all to read the rest if you’re interested in the Israeli two step members of congress have to do to stay in Israel’s good graces. If you do don’t miss the comments.
From the comments
Her defense of her vote is right out of the book "1984." "War is peace" - "The Ministry of Truth" is the institute of lies to serve the government. For Gabbard voting against BDS, which is a step toward criminalizing support for BDS, is a defense of free speech. It would be funny if it weren't so dangerous. Her face is the face of opportunism.
Lots of people have come to the same conclusion many of us have about not knowing where Tulsi actually stands on issues and especially when it comes to war. She always addresses others in the military as her brothers and sisters and says that they are protecting our freedoms. Bullshyte! How can she not know that the patriot act rescinded most of our freedoms and especially because she has had to vote to reauthorize or not.
Also lots people commenting in this Naked Capitalism essay are asking the same thing. What does Tulsi actually stand for?
Comments
So...
she should stay a democrat? Because the democrats are anti-war? What do the democrats actually stand for?
She can do what she wants
I’m just trying to figure out what she stands for. Lots of people think that she is anti war when she isn’t. I don’t know if she has ever spoken out against the Iraq war that she served in. I think it’s great that she has left the democrats and has stated the reasons why she has. And I’m aware that they are not against wars one bit. It’s one of the many reasons why I left the party.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
I wont highlight...
the dissonance in your statements. I'll let them stand on their own.
snoopydawg,
you're reaching me. I'm listening. Thank you for bringing this together.
Tulsi is on substack
Why I'm leaving the Democratic Party
I haven’t read this yet. Sam is itching to go for a walk.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
Awesome!
There’s a lot I agree with and a few things I don’t, but appreciate her talking about them.
Okay Sam you can get my shoes now…
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
I don't want to...
go out in a fireball of radiation. I stand with anyone who speaks truth to power pointed at the warmongers in DC. She is saying the things that that the American Sheople need to hear from a politician. Before it's too late.
It is time to take away the reigns from this monster
noe-class of capitalist nightmares. That they are willingly set to destroy the earth for their agenda
is enough for most reasonable human beings to say NO. There is not
enough money in the universe to replace life. So, WTF? Who exactly gave these f'ers the
right to determine our fate? This shitty excuse for a demonocracy has no control over
their overlords. We did not elect this eccentric race of greedy buggers which only sees
personal gain as salvation.
Like you, I would prefer to not go down in a blinding white flash. Old dementia Joe ain't
gonna back down, but we will pay for this obstinate arrogance. Brains not bombs.
question everything
She looks awfully good on a surfboard
Much better than Hillary. Now there's a mental image that needs some serious clorox.
Judging by the wurlitzer working on her I believe that she really scares the bejesus out of the establishment. Not surprising ... she is one of the few who are speaking out about the anti-populist positions of the elites, those who control our nation and the "reality".
She was put in the crosshairs some years ago when she voiced the actions of the neocons/neolibs, spoke those things that should never have been spoken. Well, she and Mike Gravel. Thrown off the island she was.
Looking at the other paths we might choose going forward, I don't think I'm going to join in the parade against her. There are many, many more ready to take up that banner and based on past performance their credibility leaves much to be desired. She may or may not be truthful but the armies arranged against her are most definitely not. I'm going to take a wait and see position.
As far as I'm concerned our current society is pretty much irredeemable. We desperately need the swamp drained. Tho the fall of our empire might turn out to be painful to me personally, humanity needs a good fumigation starting in our esteemed institutions.
BTW, couple good pieces this AM on the rising. AOC got a comeuppance. Looks like Brie needs another dose of koolaide. Maybe Sagar has some extra.
Enjoy your day. Tomorrow I'll check out our West Seattle bridge repair. Too bad we can't hire some Rus engineers to work on our infrastructure.
If she can get some traction
in stopping this current nuclear threat, I agree she has to abandon the D party. They are an embarrassment, and also dangerous to all mankind.
I hope she gets a positive response from independents and Rs.
There are numerous issues with which I disagree with Tulsi, but at the end of the day, I want us to exist. We can live on to argue policy.
"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." ---- William Casey, CIA Director, 1981
On UKR, I'd
like to see more comments from her, say about negotiating seriously now, Biden, Z and Putin, all 3 at the table, and no more US arms shipments, before nominating her for a Peace Prize.
Some light lazy person checking shows that as of post-Maidan 2014 coup, she was in favor of the US sanctioning Russia and sending in special ops forces to UKR in response to western reports of Ru shelling in the country. Btw, she shows no more than the usual NatSec neocon interventionist attitude here, has no comments on the Maidan coup, and doesn't display much grasp of the crucial importance of UKR to Russia. Makes me wonder if her transformation into the ballyhooed antiwar/anti-regime change war hero of progressives only began as she was about to launch her 2020 campaign and needed a hook to hang her hat on. https://www.msnbc.com/taking-the-hill/watch/should-us-be-involved-in-ukr...
Biden, Z and Putin, all 3 at the table
and no more arms shipments until that occurs.
Not asking for much. 3 players vs. mills. of people.
Demand it dammit.
question everything
I believe Putin suggested a dialog with Biden
and it was rejected.
I think it's obvious that there will not be any negotiation. That horse has left the barn. After the Minsk business, the Istanbul overture, etc, I don't believe the US has any credibility left. Not one iota.
I think Putin might talk with them, well maybe Biden but most definitely not Z. Their words mean nothing. I think I saw somewhere not too long ago that the US has broken every treaty that was made with native American tribes. Quite a track record.
I think at this point there can be only one resolution. Unconditional surrender. Time for the Big Mo moment in Ukr.
I haven't watched anything from MSNBC since 2015.
Point is we
should never give up trying to persuade Biden to go to the table. If we just throw in the towel right now, even as prospects for talks seem dim, it will confirm Biden in his mind that he's on the right track.
It's a very dangerous track however, with no indication that the US/Nato would not continue to hit areas inside of the new territory won by Russia, which would require a Russian response that could escalate things further. And so on.
Truth be told, Biden is incapable of reasoning at this time
All he can do is read (barely) a prepared teleprompter. I'm sure he doesn't have a clue about the ramifications of what he is talking about.
I can't claim
to know the exact condition of Biden's mental state, except to note he's definitely showing signs of senility, but that doesn't mean 100% of the time. And recall that Biden was always inclined to be hawkish in FP. All that could change however if there arose a stronger, more vocal grassroots chorus calling for negotiations and peace, not more war. But so far it's just a few people and Code Pink, enough in total to make for a nice party gathering at my humble chapeau.
Biden couldn't function at all
w/o a teleprompter. The truth is that he is NOT capable of being in control in the least. His presidency is a complete sham. I figure the Obama and/or Hillary cabal, who are in cahoots with the neocons/neolibs that control the deep state, are using him as a front.
Not only a sham
It’s proof for me that the president is just a figurehead who has no real power and the
companycountry is run by unelected people that we don’t know about. Congress too has just become a figurehead since the lobbyists write most of the legislation and congress only votes on it and often without having a chance to read what they are voting on. It might have been Massie who spilled that bean. But I first learned about from Ryan when republicans cut taxes to the bone because they were ordered to do so. Democrats pretended that they were against it, but after republicans screwed up a bit they needed democrats help to fix the problems which they happily did.Our government has abdicated its duty to we the people some decades ago. Or maybe they didn’t really have any power to begin with? Robber barons also had lots of power. Banks and defense companies…now big pharma…good golly this list is probably very long.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
most pertinent reponse toTulsi's withdrawal from Team Blue:
Who cares?
She got nowhere in her run for the White House and she has never played a high profile role as a Democrat in Congress. I got a kick out of her defamation suit against Hillary, but she bailed out of that fight far short of the courthouse. She does have a ton of "followers" on social media, but so what?
It is the novelty of her message that grabs attention. That is the beginning, middle and end of my interest in this little ripple in cyberspace. As of now, she is not running for any office. If and when she throws her hat into the Presidential ring, I will consider voting for her with considerable skepticism, for the reasons Snoopy is relating plus a few of my own -- like I don't give a flying fart about who is the Big Kahuna of our Banana Republic. If she runs for the GOP prez nomination. I might cast a shits and giggles anarchic vote for her to stir the pot.
I have only a minuscule but not zero hope for some way out of the clusterfuck of our civilization. We need for huge numbers of people to join together and withhold cooperation from the war machine. One has to understand that we are subservient to a war machine to join in such an effort. There is very little, but again not zero reason to expect the Main Stream Media to pass this message along. So when Ron Paul, Rand Paul or Tucker Carlson can utter a few truthful words in a medium that reaches millions of people, I am glad to hear it and I try to persuade other people to take note.
I do not understand why anybody wants to rain on this parade, especially when there is no consequence to the "support" of listening and approving of the subversive message.
It does seem likely that Gabbard will try to get somewhere politically. If and when that happens, the negative aspects of her public persona and record will be relevant. Until then, who cares if she is full of shit?
I cried when I wrote this song. Sue me if I play too long.
It was a joke when I floated that
Tulsi (R) vs Liz Cheney (D) presidential race, but the longer it goes the more serious it sounds. So I'll say it - I would vote for Tulsi - and expect to be disappointed, but also I would expect to survive the consequences. (if Tulsi won) This is not what I expect from most if not all other possible scenarios.
Sour grapes note: We wouldn't be in this mess if Bernie had had the faith to quit the primaries in 2016 and run as a Green. He would have had to gather petitions to get on the ballot in enough states as a write in and it would have gone to the House, but he would have won. Either that or the backlash against House Republicans voting for Hillary and Hillary herself would have led to the Libertarians and Greens sweeping the corrupt duopoly in 2018 and 2020.
We can dream, can't we?
On to Biden since 1973
I loved seeing Tulsi give them the what for....
Is she going to be an alternative to the dims and rethugs? I doubt it. No one is allowed to challenge the system. My take is she's going for a media position to boost her voice....but we'll see what we see. After all in the US it is all a media/PR war.
None the less ..Go Tulsi! Bring it on.
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
Here’s another take on what Tulsi did that seems fair
It describes how when she first came to congress she was treated as the next best thing for democrats. Both Pelosi and Obama sang her praises, but after Hillary stole the primary they didn’t like the things she was saying and doing.
Tulsi Gabbard dares to challenge Washington’s war machine
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
Something that is under played/reported...
...is her support for Bernie in 2016, resigning her vice chair position in of the DNC to do so. That I believe was a turning point.
I wrote to Bernie in early 2020, asking him to support Tulsi. He sent me a personal card saying he heard me, but he really didn't. He never supported Tulsi in 2020 which I found an additional disappointment in a long line.
“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”
She voted against
re-authorization. Several times.
Gabbard says in her initial statement that on what is planned as a regular program that she will be going into much more depth on the points she raised in subsequent episodes.
She already clarified some points that I felt she hadn't addressed well or at all previously. Definitely agree that she should be held to defining/defending her stance on Israel. But then so should other politicians, including 'America First' types - some of whom should be required to attach a disclaimer, 'except for Israel, Black Rock, Raytheon...'
Yes I commented on her trying to get rid
of the patriot act after she wrote about it on substack which I posted above.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
How to evaluate politicians
Never mind what they say, watch what they do.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
Listened to her show
Was sickened that I once thought well of someone who is such a tool. Defending American-Taliban is both reprehensible and foolish.
I cut her off halfway through.
Tulsi went full on Republican.
Think you could you be
...a little less specific?
What does 'full on Republican' even mean?
Gabbard's presentation centered on basic principles: rule of law, freedom of expression and religion, right to keep and bear arms, etc. and how the Democratic Party is either failing to uphold or actively working to destroy and undermine them.
Now, a person *could* argue that the principles she is invoking are invalid or irrelevant. Or that the Democratic Party is upholding them.
That would at least be addressing the issue in a meaningful, mature manner.
- BR
AKA/Alternative Handle: 'Battle of Athens'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Trc0b1v8RtY