Former Democratic presidential candidate, who was branded a "Russian asset" by Hillary Clinton for her anti-war views, is again refusing to blindly follow party's talking points – this time over fears of election fraud.
"Whether in the midst of a pandemic, as we are now, where mail-in voting is likely to drastically increase, or even in a normal election, no one should get in between a voter and the ballot box," the Hawaii congresswoman said Friday on Twitter.
Banning ballot harvesting is not a partisan issue. It's been used & abused in states like North Carolina and California & is ripe for fraud.
That's why I intro'd HR8285, the Election Fraud Prevention Act w/ @RodneyDavis - to protect the integrity of our elections & our democracy pic.twitter.com/ltZhaenSVB
Gabbard joined Thursday with Illinois Republican Congressman Rodney Davis to introduce a bill that would block federal funding to states that allow ballot harvesting – letting paid activists canvass neighborhoods to gather mail-ballots and turn them in on behalf of voters. There have been documented abuses with ballot harvesting, including a North Carolina case that led to an election being nullified and redone.
But Gabbard is running afoul of the Democratic party's position on election fraud. The Democrat-controlled House has blocked all efforts to ban ballot harvesting, while party leaders and their mainstream media allies have argued repeatedly that major voter fraud is a myth and that President Donald Trump's attacks on the susceptibility of mail-in voting to foul play are unfounded.
Gabbard directly contradicted that message in her tweet, saying ballot harvesting is "ripe for fraud and poses a serious threat to the integrity of our elections." She added that abuses "is something we've actually seen happen in recent elections."
The stakes are high since a huge increase in absentee and mail-in voting is expected to occur this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Gabbard has a history of offending Democrats with unauthorized positions, such as when she embarrassed a party favorite, Senator Kamala Harris, in a presidential primary debate last year, by reminding voters of her record as prosecutor. Last December, the congresswoman voted "present" on both articles of impeachment against Trump.
She was out of step again earlier this month, joining conservatives in blasting Netflix for streaming the controversial movie "Cuties," which she called "child porn." That indiscretion led to her being smeared as a QAnon conspiracy theorist by activist Melissa Ryan.
And as in the case of Gabbard's attack on Netflix, she's again winning praise from Republicans, this time for her position on ballot harvesting. Conservative author Helena Morrissey called Gabbard "a talented and nuanced politician stopped in her tracks because she doesn't follow the narrative." Commentator Blaire White said Gabbard was "the only Dem candidate that mattered."
The comparison here with the Biden “campaign” is surreal. A talented and nuanced politician stopped in her tracks because she doesn’t follow the narrative.
While reaction to Gabbard's bill on Twitter was overwhelmingly positive, one anti-Republican commenter leaned on a popular Democrat pejorative, calling the Iraq War veteran a "Russian operative".
Another Twitter user mocked Democrats' use of the Russia crutch, saying, "Uh-oh, Russia's foot soldier is being puppeteered again. Remember, kids, by doing something that objectively helps protect voting, if it's inconvenient for Democrats, you're actually a threat to democracy."
Uh oh russia's foot soldier is being puppeteered again. Remember, kids, by doing something that objectively helps protect voting, if it's inconvenient for democrats you're actually a threat to democracy. Voting ID? Democrats no like. It bad. https://t.co/08puwO5htJ
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