With every passing year, politicians grow more confident in their ability to thrust Americans into another war, to make decisions that benefit themselves and not their constituents, and to increase their profits as the average American can hardly scrape by. Few politicians take a stand against this, to what has become the norm, and when they do, the mainstream media will either smear them or not cover them at all. It takes a soldier-president to reverse this course. Fortunately, we have such a candidate right now.
Earlier this month Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard officially kicked off her presidential campaign in Waikiki. A major in the Army National Guard, Gabbard, 37, did two tours of duty in the Middle East before being elected to Congress in 2012. She drew on that experience during her announcement. “These powerful politicians dishonor the sacrifices made by every one of my brothers and sisters in uniform and their families, as they are the ones who pay the prices of these wars,” she said. During her time in Congress, Gabbard has taken the now rare position of calling out and opposing the United States’ interventionist military policies. Gabbard further expressed that “every American pays the price for these wars that cost us trillions of dollars since 9/11.”
Tulsi Gabbard has a history of taking a stand. In 2016 she resigned from her position as vice chair of the Democratic National Committee to endorse Bernie Sanders, as the establishment Democrats and the mainstream media made an orchestrated attempt to push their candidate of choice, Hillary Clinton. It would seem history repeats itself. CNN has already effectively endorsed Kamala Harris, providing her with favorable coverage and a prime-time townhall event.
Over the years I’ve learned it’s best to first follow the money. Kamala Harris’s largest donor is Warner Media Group, the parent company of CNN. Tulsi Gabbard is a unique 2020 presidential candidate who is not taking corporate PAC money to fund her campaign. That means all of her funding must come from the people.
I was 11 years old when John Kennedy delivered his inaugural address. His speech had a profound impact on my life when several years later I would volunteer to join the Marine Corps. Gabbard turned to those inspiring words when she said this: “I ask you to join me, in this spirit of putting service before self, to stand up against the forces of greed and corruption. John F. Kennedy once said, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.’ We must heed his call to action today, at this critical time in our history. We must stand up and fight for the soul of our country.”
It is clear that we, as a nation, have forgotten the core principles of what America was meant to be. Gabbard’s words and deeds as a soldier and elected representative offer a glimmer of hope that she might be the right leader to help us all rediscover what it means to be an American. “When we raise our right hand and volunteer to serve, we set aside our own interests to serve our country, to fight for all Americans. It is this principle of service above self, that is at the heart of every soldier. At the heart of every service number.” She continued, “I will bring this soldier’s principles to the White House, restoring the values of dignity, honor and respect to the presidency and above all else, love for our people and love for our country.”
Attorney William Paparian is a former mayor of Pasadena
