Trump May Pick Gabbard As Running Mate

Trump acknowledged considering at least five prominent Republicans and one former Democrat as potential running mates for the general election…reports Asian Lite News

Donald Trump, after excluding Vivek Ramaswamy as his potential running mate in the US Presidential polls, has now narrowed down another Indian American among five other candidates for the vice president’s position.

Sources close to Trump, as reported by Bloomberg agency, reveal that Trump seeks a running mate not driven by the spotlight but one who can significantly bolster his chances against President Joe Biden. Tulsi Gabbard, a former US representative once hailed as a rising star in the Democratic Party, emerges as a potential vice-presidential pick on Trump’s shortlist.

Last month, Trump acknowledged considering at least five prominent Republicans and one former Democrat as potential running mates for the general election. Notably, Tulsi Gabbard, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott, Byron Donalds, and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem were mentioned by the New York Post.

Gabbard, who served in the House from 2013 to the end of 2020, ran an unsuccessful White House campaign in the 2020 Democratic primary. The first Hindu American in Congress, Gabbard has been critical of the Biden administration over its handling of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. She officially left the party last year, posting a video on Twitter claiming it is “now under the complete control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness”.

During the November 2022 mid-terms, she endorsed and campaigned for Republican politicians, including 2020 election-defying gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Senate candidate Blake Masters. Gabbard has been frequently seen as a guest on the conservative-leaning cable channel after severing ranks with the Democratic party.

Tulsi Gabbard’s background reveals a trajectory of notable achievements. Born in Leloaloa, American Samoa, she earned a B.S.B.A. in business administration from Hawaii Pacific University in 2009. Gabbard made history in 2002 as the youngest person elected to the Hawaii state legislature, representing District 42 in West Oahu until 2004. Amidst her legislative duties, she enlisted in the Hawaii Army National Guard in 2003 and was deployed for a tour in Iraq in 2004.

Her commitment to service continued as she graduated from the Accelerated Officer Candidate School at Ft. McClellan, Alabama, in 2007, emerging as the distinguished honor graduate, a first for a woman in the Academy’s history. Gabbard later served as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka from 2007 to 2009, before her deployment to Kuwait in 2009 to train counterterrorism units.

In 2010, Gabbard ventured into municipal politics, winning a seat on the Honolulu City Council, followed by her election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. Notably, she represented Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District from 2013 to 2021, becoming the first American Samoan Congresswoman and the first practicing Hindu member of Congress.

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