Representative Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) holds a Town Hall meeting on Super Tuesday Primary night on March 3, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is suspending her presidential campaign, ending a long-shot effort that saw her feuding with Hillary Clinton and raising fears among Democrats that she would mount a third-party 2020 bid.
She's offering her full support to former Vice President Joe Biden. She made the announcement by email on Thursday.
During her candidacy, Gabbard appeared often on Fox News and angered fellow Democrats by voting “present” on the articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. In October, she announced she wouldn't be seeking reelection to her congressional seat, instead, focusing on her presidential bid.
Gabbard attracted a sizable following in New Hampshire, where she frequently campaigned ahead of the state’s February primary. Some past supporters of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in the state warmed to her campaign over time, and she espoused a similar outsider approach to Sanders' 2016 run, which Gabbard supported.
She was also part of what once was a historically diverse Democratic field. The 38-year-old American Samoan’s campaign website described her as “the first Hindu to run for president and first practicing Hindu in Congress.” And as one of the youngest candidates in the field and a military veteran, Gabbard outlasted senators and governors who came into the large Democratic primary race with higher profiles.
Yet Gabbard’s 2020 campaign was also quick to attract questions from voters. The Hawaii congresswoman has faced backlash for her 2017 meeting in Syria with Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose government has been accused of chemical weapons attacks against its own citizens.
U.S. stocks saw a jump in the final hour of Thursday's session, and ultimately closed slightly higher for the day. Tim Pagliara, Chief Investment Officer of CapWealth, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. "The markets have had to digest a lot of action from the federal reserve this quarter and it's affecting everything from mortgage rates to how they value stocks," he said.
Rukmani Bhatia, Senior Federal Affairs Manager at Giffords, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss the importance of regulating ghost guns as a way to curb U.S. gun violence, which kills more than 40,000 Americans every year.
Gary Schlossberg, Global Strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss the dire situation caused by Russia's war on Ukraine, as the region is key for exporting grains and corn, and as the UN Food & Agriculture Organization says food prices rose to the highest levels ever in March.
Christine McDaniel, Senior Research Fellow at the Mercatus Center, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to break down the long list of sanctions that the U.S. has levied against Russia since its invasion of Ukraine, and the impact - or lack thereof - they are having on Russia.
President Joe Biden is taking fresh aim at “ghost guns" and also announced the nomination of Steve Dettlebach, who served as a U.S. attorney in Ohio from 2009 to 2016, to run the ATF.
Stefanie O'Connell Rodriguez joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss her newest mini-series on REAL SIMPLE's Money Confidential podcast, called 'Taxes in 10.'
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues, social media giant Meta said that it's using its technology to help the beleaguered nation Erin Egan, chief privacy officer, and Andrew Schroeder, vice president of research and analysis for direct relief, joined Cheddar News to discuss using data towards humanitarian relief. "Our goal with the program is to help organizations on the ground by sharing privacy-protected data sets to enable them to respond to crisis," Egan explained.
Catching you up on what you need to know on April 11, 2022, with updates on the Russia-Ukraine War, France’s presidential election, the record deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest, retail giant Amazon's objection to the Staten Island union vote, the worsening baby formula shortage, a lawsuit against Rutgers Law School, and a stomach illness possibly linked to Lucky Charms cereal.
Between Bells executive producer Conor White recaps some of the biggest stories of the week, and teaches Baker Machado and Hena Doba a thing or two at the same time. It's This Week In Trivia!