Tulsi Gabbard Is the Only Candidate Who Didn’t Answer HRC’s LGBTQ Questionnaire
HRC sent out an LGBTQ questionnaire to gauge the candidates' stances on a variety of issues important to the community, and all but one of the Democrats running to take on Donald Trump in November returned pro-LGBTQ answers on each question.
Tulsi Gabbard, who has an anti-LGBTQ past she has in recent years moved to distance herself from, was the lone candidate still in the race who failed to offer responses.
Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer, and Elizabeth Warren all signaled their support for LGBTQ people. Gabbard's answers will be added to the site if they receive a response, HRC said in a statement.
During the late '90s, Gabbard worked for her father's political action committee, the Alliance for Traditional Marriage and Values, where she helped pass an anti-marriage equality amendment in Hawaii. She was boasting of that work as recently as the early 2000s, which has drawn criticism from advocates.
She signed an amicus brief in 2013 supporting a challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act. Her campaign website includes a page trumpeting her pro-LGBTQ bona fides, which also includes cosponsoring the Equality Act.
However, last year she failed to sign onto a friend-of-the-court brief calling on the Supreme Court to rule that sex discrimination should include protections for LGBTQ individuals.
"LGBTQ people are among the most politically engaged constituencies in the country, and Democratic presidential candidates are taking notice. The more than 11 million LGBTQ voters and 57 million Equality Voters—LGBTQ voters and our allies—are crucial members of the intersectional coalition that will oust President Trump in November,” said HRC President Alphonso David in a statement.
“Throughout his administration, Trump has attacked LGBTQ people at every opportunity. From eliminating access to necessary health care to actively supporting discrimination in the workplace, Trump has put LGBTQ rights at risk. Our community is looking for a leader that understands the challenges we face each and every day and has substantive, realistic plans to overcome them. The Trump-Pence administration must be stopped and HRC will work nationwide through November to ensure that they are.”
NewNowNext reached out to the Gabbard campaign and this article will be updated if there is a response to our request or if the candidate supplies answers to HRC's survey.
