Tulsi Gabbard is officially joining the Republican party, crediting Donald Trump with reshaping the GOP into a "big tent" that supports peace and freedom.
Gabbard, a former Democrat and veteran who is known for her criticism of "warmongers" and the Deep State, stunned Trump with the news at a MAGA rally in Greensboro, North Carolina on Tuesday.
“It is because of my love for our country and specifically because of the leadership that President Trump has brought to transform the Republican Party and bring it back to the party of the people and the party of peace, that I’m proud to stand here with you today, President Trump, and announce that I’m joining the Republican Party," she said.
Gabbard praised Trump for making the GOP the party of "common sense" and "the people," as she criticized the Democrats' embrace of war, lawfare, and open borders.
“You know, I was a Democrat for over 20 years. Today’s Democrat Party is completely unrecognizable, which points to the clear choice that we have in this Election Day,” Gabbard said.
A former congresswoman from Hawaii, Gabbard endorsed Bernie Sanders in 2016 before backing Joe Biden four years later. More recently, she has become a staunch critic of the Democratic party and its drift toward authoritarianism.
"When you look at the party of Kamala Harris, for example, she is anti-freedom. She is pro-censorship, she is pro-open borders and she is pro-war without even pretending to care about peace," Gabbard said.
Trump has ushered in a political realignment that has seen disaffected Democrats like Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. flee the party for Trump's populist movement, as Republicans of yesteryear, like Dick Cheney, rally behind Democrat Kamala Harris.
Gabbard contrasted Trump with "warmongers" like Dick Cheney and his daughter, former Wyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney, who has been appearing with Harris on the campaign trail.
“President Trump has pledged to end wars, not start them. And this is why, in the eyes of the Kamala Harris-Dick Cheney Democrat Party, they will do everything possible to try to destroy him,” Gabbard added.
“This man has the courage to take them on and root out the deep rot of corruption and the swamp in Washington.”
Trump called Gabbard's transformation an "honor" and a "great surprise."
Gabbard was credited with ending Harris' first presidential campaign in 2019, when Gabbard, then a presidential candidate, confronted Harris on the debate stage about her record as a prosecutor.
