The Daily Populous Saturday November 16th, 2024 evening edition
Authored by thedailybeast.com and submitted by Quirkie

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said Friday that Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump ’s controversial pick for director of national intelligence, “is likely a Russian asset.”

Asked in an MSNBC appearance about Gabbard’s prospective nomination to a position that would come with extensive access to classified information, the Florida Democrat did not mince words.

“Tulsi Gabbard is someone who has met with war criminals, violated the Department of State’s guidance and secretly, clandestinely went to Syria and met with [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad, who gassed and attacked his own people with chemical weapons,” she said. “She’s considered to be, essentially, by most assessments, a Russian asset.”

Pressed on her own view of Gabbard, Wasserman Schultz doubled down. “I consider her someone who is likely a Russian asset,” the congresswoman said.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz on Tulsi Gabbard: "There's no question I consider her someone who is likely a Russian asset." pic.twitter.com/lstrBtlCDS — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 15, 2024

She railed against the “irresponsibility” of Trump’s recent slew of administration appointments, some of which—like Matt Gaetz for attorney general and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as head of Health and Human Services —have dropped jaws on both sides of the political aisle.

Gabbard’s announcement was also a shocker , largely for the reasons Wasserman Schultz touched on.

Once a Democrat representing Hawaii in the House, Gabbard left the party after a failed run at its presidential nomination in 2020. She would later re-emerge as a Trump backer and eventually become one of his most ardent allies.

As Wasserman Schultz alluded to, she secretly met with al-Assad, the Russian-backed Syrian leader who is responsible for the deaths of thousands of its civilians, during an eyebrow-raising visit to the country in 2017.

The concern about whether Gabbard is a “Russian asset” comes from allegations that she has the support of the Kremlin , and from controversial statements she has made in defense of the country.

There are 25+ US-funded biolabs in Ukraine which if breached would release & spread deadly pathogens to US/world. We must take action now to prevent disaster. US/Russia/Ukraine/NATO/UN/EU must implement a ceasefire now around these labs until they’re secured & pathogens destroyed pic.twitter.com/dhDTH5smIG — Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) March 13, 2022

In February 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine, Gabbard drew criticism for an X post that endorsed a Kremlin-backed conspiracy theory that the U.S. was funding biological warfare labs in Ukraine.

It prompted Sen. Mitt Romney to fire back.

“Tulsi Gabbard is parroting false Russian propaganda,” he wrote on X. “Her treasonous lies may well cost lives.”

RiggityRyGuy on November 16th, 2024 at 14:56 UTC »

How many times can we post the same things to have the same exact discussions and comments in a 24 hour period?

Ok-Detail-5773 on November 16th, 2024 at 14:18 UTC »

She ain’t wrong

HeHateMe337 on November 16th, 2024 at 14:12 UTC »

The oligarchs are taking over. Wake up and smell the coffee!!!