There is nobody in either party who has the longevity of documented support for consistent policies that Bernie Sanders boasts. He has had those same policies for longer than Tulsi Gabbard has been alive.
The next longest, though, is Tulsi Gabbard.
This is not news for people who have followed her since she came to national prominence standing up for neutrality in the DNC by resigning her vice chairmanship. Those who have known her longer than that, though, know her as the embodiment of the aloha spirit in a warrior's body that houses knowledge and experience that belie her mere 38 years of age.
She has been the target of the DNC and its humiliated cast of has-beens who are trying to hold on. Through it all, people have come to know and love her. She respects all people. She belittles nobody. She is a far saintlier person than I am in that regard, and people are noticing the respect she gives everyone as they come into contact with her.
She was right about the rigging of the DNC and was honorable enough to not participate in the process. She endorsed who she believed was the best candidate and supported her reasoning with a mixture of charisma and intellect that is unusual in politics.
She was right about the rights of indigenous people when she went to the Water Protectors to declare her support for their cause. The only other candidate this year who did that then was Bernie Sanders. This was a cause that was supported by the public by huge majorities of people. The election might have turned out differently had Hillary Clinton made this one stand for the people, because the people noticed her silence.
She was right when she chastised Senator Kamala Harris for joking about her Jamaican heritage when asked about using marijuana. As a DA, she put people into prison for drug offenses. When Harris was the AG of California, she argued against an appeal for the early release of non-violent prisoners because they provide labor the state depends upon.
She was right when she called out Pete Buttigieg for saying he would consider using the military to help fight drug cartels if the Mexican government asked for the help. Her experience on committees in the House showed a much superior intellect to the young boy genius. His experience as a military member is, at best, equal, but the intangibles of serving on House committees gives her much greater overall defense experience. Her commitment to our military personnel is unmatched by any of the candidates.
She was right when she said she believed that censure would pass the House, but that impeachment would fail and embolden Trump's supporters. The current rallying cry from the impeachment advocates is Trump is as bad as Clinton because both were impeached. What a standard.
Her analysis that Trump would need to be defeated at the polls is now the inevitable reality, and his loyalists are as upset about him facing heat as Hillary's loyalists were about her taking heat. She was right about not pursuing impeachment, and she was right about the outcome and consequences of actually impeaching Trump.
She was right to tour the countryside while the DNC figured out ways to exclude her because her honesty is not helping their cause. She has been holding meetings with townspeople throughout New Hampshire. She has been discussing at length what she would, at best, get as sound bites on the debate stage, but that is not the point. Even the establishment is noticing Tulsi Gabbard and trying to figure out ways to twist what she says so clearly into narratives that fit their agenda.
All they can do is exclude her, and people have noticed that, too!
Whether you catch a short clip of her giving someone who needs a hug the hug they need or listen to her discuss complex national security issues in a way that makes sense, she has easily been the most consistent candidate for the longest time than anyone in the race except Bernie Sanders. She isn't a cheerleader or a figurehead. She skis with the skiers and surfs with the surfers. She serves with the bravest and she defends their honor and purpose. Most of all, she is wise. She is every person, and it is amazing how she does that.
She does not play the game of identity politics, and that really bothers the establishment wing. They think because Barack Obama got elected that they needed a young, well spoken, Black candidate. They fail to realize that Obama's success came as a populist candidate who offered hope, and not the ex-president firmly in line with the establishment wing of the party. Young people don't see the old ex-president in the same light as the old people who were young people when Obama was a young person. How can they? They weren't there.
But one young woman from Hawaii was there. She was there to answer the call for the country after 9-11. She was there to answer the call for two deployments in the middle east. She was there to answer the call as a young person who was inspired by the young candidate from Illinois who called the people to action. She was there to answer the call when it was clear that the establishment was not going to give Bernie Sanders a fair shot in 2016.
She did not go after the delegates in Iowa. It is a small state that is more hype than it is strategic. She was right about that, too.
It is unlikely that Tulsi Gabbard will catch Bernie Sanders in this nomination cycle. She will need to make up substantial ground to pull ahead of some of the candidates, and she will be catching several of them. However, her continued candidacy is important for the nation and for the political revolution even if it does not succeed. As much as I want her to be the Commander in Chief, her chances will be much better in '24 when the progressive wing cannot be outvoted by the establishment wing.
Bernie Sanders started the political revolution by inspiring young people to get active in the electoral process. It was the same message he has been conveying for more than four decades. That is longer than Tulsi Gabbard has been alive. However, she has done more living and has more experience in some aspects of life than people twice her age.
Some people have criticized her for showing more support for Bernie Sanders' campaign than he shows for hers. I suppose they think that they are better political strategists than Tulsi Gabbard, or that her consistent message could use some updating. However, she is right about that, too.
If all goes as planned, I suspect she will be in the position to make the difference at the convention, and that will make her the most important person in the world at that time!
