Democratic Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard poured cold water on Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s sexism allegations against Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
WASHINGTON, DC JANUARY 10: Democratic Presidential candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) speaks to reporters at U.S. Capitol after the last votes of the week on January 10, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Gabbard, who unlike Sanders and Warren failed to qualify for Tuesday’s Democratic primary debate in Iowa, tweeted that when she approached Sanders about her intention to run in the 2020 election, he was nothing but supportive.
I also met with @BernieSanders before announcing my candidacy. We had a nice one-on-one conversation and I informed him that I would be running for President. In that meeting, he showed me the greatest respect and encouragement, just as he always has.
— Tulsi Gabbard (@TulsiGabbard) January 14, 2020
“I also met with Bernie Sanders before announcing my candidacy,” she wrote. “We had a nice one-on-one conversation and I informed him that I would be running for President.”
“In that meeting, he showed me the greatest respect and encouragement, just as he always had.”
CNN published a report Monday citing four anonymous sources claiming that when Warren approached Sanders about running in 2020, he told her he didn’t think a woman could be elected president. Sanders and his surrogates vehemently denied the claim after the report surfaced, which was widely criticized for its lack of context. (RELATED: CNN Cites Four Anonymous Sources With No Direct Knowledge In Order To Call Bernie Sanders Sexist)
MARSHALLTOWN, IOWA – JANUARY 12: Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks at a campaign stop at Fisher Elementary School on January 12, 2020 in Marshalltown, Iowa. The 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses will take place on February 3, 2020, making it the first nominating contest for the Democratic Party in choosing their presidential candidate to face Donald Trump in the 2020 election. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Warren released a statement later that evening supporting CNN’s article.
In response to a great deal of questions we’ve had today, below is a statement from Elizabeth Warren: pic.twitter.com/PdBCHJQCJE
— Kristen Orthman (@KristenOrthman) January 14, 2020
“Among the topics that came up was what would happen if Democrats nominated a female candidate,” the statement reads. “I though a woman could win; he disagreed. I have no interest in discussing this private meting any further because Bernie and I have far more in common than our differences on punditry.”