Tulsi Gabbard Is Invisible!
The Invisible Woman
W.J. Astore
Last night, I caught a snippet of MSNBC as the panelists talked about the upcoming debates between two white men in their late seventies. Nobody mentioned that a woman of color in her late thirties had also qualified for these debates, and an Iraq war veteran to boot: Tulsi Gabbard.
Today, I saw an article at the New York Times with the plaintive title: "Was It Always Going to Be the Last Men Standing?" Here's the online summary of the article:
A two-man race? Women aren’t surprised
“One of the hardest parts of this,” Elizabeth Warren said as she withdrew from the presidential race on Thursday, “is all those little girls who are going to have to wait four more years.”
The senator’s exit essentially winnows what had been a diverse Democratic field to two white men, and the debate over an enduring question — can a woman win the presidency? — remains unresolved, our politics reporter Lisa Lerer writes in a news analysis.
I like that little caveat of "essentially winnows." Because Tulsi Gabbard is still in the race, has qualified for the debates (under the old rules), and is being treated like a non-person by the cynical, corporate, manipulative, and dishonest Democratic National Committee.
People are still telling me to "vote blue no matter who," even as Tulsi is denied her right to be heard, and even as the DNC conspired to eliminate all moderate challengers to Joe Biden so that they could block Bernie Sanders.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden, to put it gently, has shown serious signs of decline and will be 82 years of age in 2024. He has called for cuts to social security and has been a water boy for decades for credit card companies and their usurious interest rates. He voted for the Iraq War, supported job-eliminating trade agreements, and is a servant of Big Pharma and the health insurance industry. among other faults. And has everyone suddenly forgot his creepy tendency to touch women, to sniff their hair, and otherwise to invade their personal space?
If only we had a woman of substance to challenge these two ageing white men, Biden and Sanders. If only she was principled, perhaps even a different religion (Hindu?), perhaps even a woman of color, perhaps even a war veteran, perhaps even principled in her stance against wasteful, regime-change wars.
But where are we to find such a woman? Because I'm sure the DNC would embrace such a paragon of diversity committed to truth-telling. Wouldn't they?
Update (5:05 PM EST): Tulsi eliminated from the final two debates with a new DNC rule:
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/486348-new-standards-eliminate-tulsi-gabbard-from-next-democratic-debate?__twitter_impression=true
For what it's worth, I posted this personal note on social media:
I know politics is divisive or boring to many. But here's the story. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) has changed its rules to muzzle Tulsi Gabbard, eliminating her from future debates. Remember when the DNC rewrote its rules to allow billionaire Mike Bloomberg to debate?
We're left with two old white guys, aged 78 and 77, to represent Democratic diversity and "wokeness." Meanwhile, Tulsi, a woman, an Iraq war veteran, and a Hindu, is cast into the darkness. And while I like Bernie Sanders, I would love to hear a young woman speak against the stupidity and wastefulness of America's wars, which is the core of Tulsi's message.
And, of course, look when the DNC announces this rule change: late on a Friday afternoon, when they assume it will go unnoticed. It's all so cynical and sad.
When the Democrats lose to Trump again in November, remember this moment, among so many other cynical decisions by the DNC.