Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is extremely likable. As a veteran and active member of the Army Reserve, it’s clear she has a deep love for her country. As a presidential candidate in 2020, she stood out among her Democratic Party peers for her knowledge and poise. She held her own with the more experienced members of the party. But this week, Gabbard announced she is leaving the Democratic Party, which she called an “elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness.”
It’s a good thing Gabbard is rejecting many aspects of leftism. It also doesn’t make her a conservative leader.
It’s far too easy for people on the Right to embrace those who leave the Democratic Party. Defection isn’t easy, given our intense polarization. It is certainly admirable. However, not being a Democrat doesn’t make Gabbard, or anyone else, a Republican, conservative, or like-minded when it comes to the most pressing issues. That point is often overlooked when ideological enemies lose one of their own. That Gabbard rejects the progressive mentality fueling leftist culture wars is commendable. But conservatives must remain sober in their evaluation.
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