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US-POLITICS-VOTE-GABBARD
US congresswoman Gabbard, who met Syria’s Assad, says will run for
president
WASHINGTON, Jan 12, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Democratic congresswoman Tulsi
Gabbard, an Iraq war veteran who met dictator Bashar al-Assad in Syria during
that country’s devastating civil war, said Friday that she is launching a US
presidential bid.
“I have decided to run and will be making a formal announcement within the
next week,” Gabbard told CNN.
If elected, the 37-year-old lawmaker would be the youngest president in US
history. She is the first Hindu member of Congress and its first Samoan
American.
“There are a lot of reasons for me to make this decision. There are a lot
of challenges that are facing the American people that I’m concerned about
and that I want to help solve,” she said, citing health care access and
climate change among them.
Gabbard sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where she is able to
influence US foreign policy.
“There is one main issue that is central to the rest, and that is the issue
of war and peace,” Gabbard added. “I look forward to being able to get into
this and to talk about it in depth when we make our announcement.”
Gabbard was born in American Samoa and was raised in Hawaii, where she is
known to surf.
The previous Democratic president, Barack Obama, was also raised in Hawaii,
and is the only president who was born in the island state.
Gabbard’s announcement comes ahead of what is expected to be a wave of
high-profile candidates throwing their hats in the ring.
Senator Elizabeth Warren has formed an exploratory committee for a
presidential bid, and last week took a high-profile trip to the early voting
state of Iowa.
Former vice president Joe Biden and progressive Senator Bernie Sanders,
whom Gabbard supported over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic primaries,
are also mulling entering the race.
Julian Castro, a former mayor of San Antonio who served in Barack Obama’s
cabinet as housing secretary, says he will announce his 2020 plans on
Saturday.
Gabbard drew heavy criticism when she met secretly with Assad in Damascus
in 2017 during a fact-finding mission that also took her to the decimated
city of Aleppo. She also met with refugees and Syrian opposition leaders.
“Originally, I had no intention of meeting with Assad, but when given the
opportunity, I felt it was important to take it,” Gabbard said when her trip
became public.
“I think we should be ready to meet with anyone if there’s a chance it can
help bring about an end to this war, which is causing the Syrian people so
much suffering.”
Gabbard was deployed to Iraq in 2005, and she maintains her role as a
member of the Hawaii National Guard.
BSS/AFP/GMR/0939 hrs