Former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard fired back against Sen. Mitt Romney during Thursday’s hearing investigating the weaponization of the federal government against political dissent.
“US Senator Mitt Romney accused me of treason, a crime that is punishable by death under our laws,” Gabbard said. “I challenged him to back this serious allegation up with evidence. What was this based on?”
“There was no response, no explanation, no evidence, and certainly no apology,” Gabbard stated.
Gabbard, who reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, noted that “for somebody who wears the uniform, this is serious, and it’s serious not only to me, but to my fellow servicemembers, everyone of us making a decision at some point in our lives to raise our hand, prepared and volunteering to lay our life down for this country.
In April 2022, Romney tweeted, “Tulsi Gabbard is parroting false Russian propaganda. Her treasonous lies may well cost lives.”
In response, Gabbard announced that she was sending a cease and desist letter to Romney’s office.
“When powerful, influential people make baseless accusations of treason, a crime punishable by death, in order to intimidate, silence and censor those who speak the truth, it has a chilling effect on our democracy,” Gabbard wrote at the time. “This cannot go unchecked.”
Romney has unequivocally ruled out supporting 45th President Donald Trump’s third bid for the White House, even if the former president secures the Republican Party’s nomination.
The establishment U.S. Senator from Utah, who once sought Trump’s support in his failed bid failed to oust 44th President Barack Obama from the White House in 2012, made the remarks during a climate change event in Washington, D.C.
“Absolutely not,” Romney said, according to The Washington Examiner. He then touted his impeachment record, telling attendees, “Look, I voted to remove him from office twice.”
Claiming that “he loses,” Romney added that Trump is “not a person who ought to have the reigns of the government of the United States.”
