Tulsi Gabbard ends presidential campaign, backs Joe Biden

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii pulled the plug Thursday on her presidential campaign and endorsed former Vice President Joseph R. Biden, saying she might not agree with Mr. Biden on everything but that he can be trusted to lead the country.

Ms. Gabbard said the results from Tuesday’s elections make clear that Democratic primary voters have picked Mr. Biden to be their standard-bearer and take on President Trump in the general election.

“I’m confident that he will lead our country guided by the spirit of aloha, respect and compassion, and thus help heal the divisiveness that has been tearing our country apart,” she said.

Though Ms. Gabbard won just two delegates and didn’t end up being a major factor in the race, her failed run did elevate her profile nationally as she earned a reputation as a maverick Democrat willing to defy her party. The Iraq War veteran had run on a staunchly anti-interventionist platform and consistently warned against the destabilizing effects of U.S. military involvement in the Middle East.

Ms. Gabbard’s exit means that Mr. Biden and Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont are the only two major Democratic contenders still actively seeking the nomination.

Mr. Biden, who is on the cusp of putting Mr. Sanders away after wins in Florida, Arizona, and Illinois this week, said he was grateful for the congresswoman’s support. He said Ms. Gabbard “has put her life on the line in service of this country and continues to serve with honor today.”

Ms. Gabbard also said she extended best wishes to Mr. Sanders, his team, and his supporters.

“I have such a great appreciation for Sen. Sanders’ love for our country and the American people and his sincere desire to improve the lives of all Americans,” she said.

Ms. Gabbard had resigned her post as a Democratic National Committee vice chair in 2016 to endorse Mr. Sanders over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in that year’s presidential primary contest.

She called on Americans to come together in the face of the coronavirus threat in the way the country did after 9/11.

“It is once again time, as Americans and as neighbors in this global community, that we stand together … and work hand in hand to defeat this new enemy — the coronavirus,” she said.

Ms. Gabbard had said in October that she wouldn’t seek reelection, which raises questions about her future plans.

Nicholas Sarwark, chairman of the Libertarian National Committee, said he had been holding out hope that she would migrate to his party and that she had been many Libertarians’ preferred 2020 Democrat.

“After she was treated so shamefully by the national committee, I don’t understand why she’s staying. I assume that she’s got some sort of Cabinet promise or something,” he said.

Mr. Sarwark said an administration job would be a logical step for her to take, or that she could have a future as a political analyst.

“If you’re offered a job in the new administration and you think that it’s a pretty good chance that he wins, I can’t begrudge her that,” he said.

But Ms. Gabbard had been a thorn in the side of her own party for much of the campaign, with many raising questions about her relationship with Syrian dictator Bashar Assad and speculating that her endgame was a third-party run that would hurt the eventual nominee.

She broke with her party to vote “present” on the two articles of impeachment against Mr. Trump in December and kept up a running feud with Mrs. Clinton. That back-and-forth included a lawsuit in which Ms. Gabbard’s lawyers accused the former secretary of state of defaming the congresswoman by calling her a “Russian asset.”

John Verdejo, a Democratic National Committee member from North Carolina, said he doesn’t see much of a political future for Ms. Gabbard either in the Democratic Party or in Hawaii.

“Though she had her views, she was not willing to work with others to bring people along to her views, a la Sanders or even Warren,” he said.

Ms. Gabbard eviscerated Sen. Kamala D. Harris of California in one debate for Ms. Harris’s record on marijuana-related prosecutions as California attorney general, and also mixed it up with former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio in other notable exchanges.

“I definitely could see a future [for] her on Fox News, yeah,” he said.