Former President Donald Trump recently met with former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard on strategies for the Department of Defense for his potential second term.
The meeting aimed to explore alternative management approaches for the DoD should Trump reclaim the White House in 2024.
Despite coming from opposing political parties, Trump and Gabbard have enjoyed a mutually supportive dynamic.
Gabbard is known for her unorthodox stances within her party and has been openly critical of the Democratic establishment, especially on foreign policy issues.
Her views often align with Trump’s, mainly on criticisms of endless foreign wars.
Gabbard also became one of the few Democrats who met with Trump during his transition to the presidency in November 2016.
The meeting between Trump and Gabbard highlighted her willingness to engage with political figures across the aisle,
The Washington Post reported:
The talks with Gabbard — who has staked out a role as an outspoken critic of aid to Ukraine and U.S. military interventions overseas — are part of a broader conversation about how Trump would manage the Pentagon differently if voters award him a second term. Trump has repeatedly told advisers and donors in recent months that one of his biggest mistakes was his personnel choices at the Pentagon, where he says he was stymied by officials with diverging opinions.
He sought to immediately pull out of many countries where the United States had troops, wanted to withdraw from NATO at times because he said other countries were not paying enough, questioned traditional alliances, praised and negotiated with dictators considered foes of the United States, and clashed repeatedly with the Republican establishment, particularly in the Senate, on foreign policy.
Trump met with Gabbard at least once in person last year. She has often shared Trump’s approach toward the world in his post-presidency, according to advisers who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose private details. Gabbard and Trump and his team have discussed military entanglements overseas and Trump’s frustrations with Republicans on foreign policy. Trump advisers also hope Gabbard — who serves in the Army Reserve — could appeal to independent voters in a general election, one person familiar with the strategy said, and advocate his military policies.
Gabbard also came out against efforts to remove Trump from state ballots.
Last year, Gabbard said Democratic Secretary of State Shenna Bellows’s decision to remove former President Donald Trump from Maine’s 2024 Republican primary ballot.
The Daily Fetched reported:
This week, Bellows declared Trump was ineligible for the office, citing the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection” clause.
On December 19, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled Trump was disqualified from appearing on the ballot.
Watch
TULSI GABBARD: “If you're a Democrat or Republican, now is the time that we as Americans must stand up for our democratic process in this country.”
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) December 29, 2023
pic.twitter.com/WSPYtzEIQA
“I think it’s really important Pete, for every single American who is seeing this news alert pop up to recognize how dangerous this is,” Gabbard told “Hannity” guest host Pete Hegseth.
“You have a secretary of state who is a known partisan, who is known to be against Trump, she supported the impeachment of Trump, single-handedly making this decision to say the former president cannot be on the ballot, taking away our right as voters in this country to decide who we want to serve as our next president and commander in chief.”
READ: Tulsi Gabbard Hints She’s Open to Being Trump’s VP: ‘I Think about It Every Day’
