A centrist Democratic congresswoman lashed out at Tulsi Gabbard after the party defector campaigned for her Republican rival in Virginia this weekend.

Rep. Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer, took aim at Gabbard with a pointed tweet bearing a photo showing Gabbard smiling while standing beside GOP candidate Yesli Vega. Spanberger condemned Gabbard, a former congresswoman who years ago stoked the ire of the Democratic Party with a secret trip to visit with leader Bashar Assad for a “fact-finding” missing in war-torn Syria, over her foreign policy views.

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“What do Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, and Yesli Vega have in common? Tulsi Gabbard supports them,” Spanberger said.

The photo of Gabbard and Vega appeared to come from a tweet from the GOP candidate at her Saturday get-out-the-vote rally as she campaigns to flip Virginia’s 7th Congressional District.

Taking the mold of Spanberger’s tweet, Vega tweeted right back at the incumbent. “What do Guzman, Pelosi, and Groomers have in common? They own [Spanberger’s] vote.

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Though Vega accused Spanberger as being beholden to Democratic Party leadership, name-dropping House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in particular along with “groomers” swipe that is related to a culture war issue surrounding the LGBTQ community, the incumbent has not been afraid to criticize party leaders, as she recently did so over a stock-trading bill. Spanberger has also decried a focus by more liberal members in her party in recent years on socialism and defunding the police.

Gabbard is a former congresswoman from Hawaii, Army Reserve officer, and combat veteran. She also served as vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee and ran for president in 2020 as a Democrat. Although Gabbard was once seen as a rising star in the party, that relationship has soured in recent years. She announced her departure from the Democratic Party this month, claiming it is now under the “control of an elitist cabal of warmongers,” and Gabbard has decried what she says are “regime change wars” in places such as Syria, and next, perhaps in Russia. Though she says she is now an independent, Gabbard has been hitting the campaign trail for Republican candidates in recent weeks, including for MAGA stars in Arizona.

Original Location: What a Virginia Democrat said of Tulsi Gabbard after campaign visit for GOP rival

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