Rep. Tulsi Gabbard: Mueller discovering collusion could have ‘led to civil war’
Hawaii congresswoman has centered her 2020 campaign on her anti-war views
Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard appeared relieved that Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation did not establish a case that the Donald Trump campaign colluded with Russia in the 2016 election and urged her Democratic colleagues to move on.
The Hawaii congresswoman, who has centered her fledgling 2020 campaign on her anti-war views, raised the possibility that the discovery of collusion could have set in motion a “terribly divisive crisis,” and even a civil war.
“If the president of the United States had been indicted for conspiring with Russia to interfere with and affect the outcome of our elections, it would have precipitated a terribly divisive crisis that could have even led to civil war,” Gabbard said in a statement Monday night.
“[W]e all need to put aside our partisan interests and recognize that finding the president of the United States not guilty of conspiring with a foreign power to interfere with our elections is a good thing for America.”
Tulsi Gabbard is running for president: Here are some congressional basics
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While Gabbard joined her party in calling for Mueller to make the entire report available to the public, she departed from much of the Democratic caucus by urging her colleagues to “move beyond this divisive issue that has taken up enough of the national conversation.”Democratic leaders meanwhile have raised concerns about the integrity of Attorney Barr’s four-page letter summarizing the Mueller report, and have pressed for Barr to testify to Congress. Democrats are seeking the full report and underlying documents in order to investigate possible offenses outside of questions of Russian collusion — including the president’s possible obstruction of justice, corruption, personal and business finances, and ties to foreign countries or entities.Gabbard’s presidential campaign was set back early on when her campaign manager parted with the campaign after its official kickoff event, Politico reported.
The candidate has since struggled to gain traction with voters, according to recent polling.
In a national poll of Democratic voters conducted by CNN/SSRS in mid-March, fewer than 1 percent of respondents named Gabbard as their first choice for president.
