Former U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard put Mitt Romney on notice this week with a cease and desist letter sent to the Republican Senator from Utah — as well as one to former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann — for their disparaging claims that Gabbard was "treasonous" and a "Russian asset."
The letter to Romney— sent by San Francisco attorney and RNC Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon — came with a warning that if Romney wished to "avoid litigation, we demand your response to this letter on or before April 27, 2022" before outlining the impetus for the cease and desist letter:
On March 13, 2022, you tweeted the following: “Tulsi Gabbard is parroting false Russian propaganda. Her treasonous lies may well cost lives.”1 Your tweet had no surrounding context and was not part of a broader conversation. Your accusation that Representative Gabbard, a combat veteran and current military officer, has engaged in “treasonous” activity is completely false, a fact of which you were well aware when you made your claim. And as explained below, your accusation that Representative Gabbard lied also has no basis in fact.
While your tweet lacked any context, we surmise that your tweet was made in reference to a video Representative Gabbard published on Twitter that same day. In her video, Representative Gabbard called for a ceasefire in the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine so that any biological laboratories in Ukraine could be secured. In her video, Representative Gabbard discussed United States government reports regarding American-funded biological laboratories in Ukraine and opined on the danger potentially posed by these laboratories. Representative Gabbard also generally criticized the United States government’s ongoing funding of laboratories engaged in experimental research on pathogens both in the U.S. and foreign countries because such pathogens may escape and result in new pandemics—threatening the health and wellbeing of citizens of the U.S. as well as people around the world.
Whether your tweet’s baseless accusations stemmed from Representative Gabbard’s March 13, 2022, video or have some other unknown genesis, they were malicious and could not be further from the truth. Representative Gabbard is loyal to the United States and its interests. Further, any suggestion that she supports Russia’s actions in Ukraine is unmoored from reality. Representative Gabbard has unequivocally condemned Vladimir Putin for this brutal attack on Ukraine. She has personally visited Ukraine and has great love, empathy, and sympathy for both the nation and its people.
While Representative Gabbard believes that free speech is a cornerstone of American democracy, your accusation of treason is far outside of the bounds of free speech and civility. It is defamation.
In addition to ceasing such commentary about Gabbard, the letter demands that Romney "retract/takedown" his statements and — if he wishes to "settle this matter before litigation is commenced" — "agree to enter into a settlement and release agreement" that will "include a retraction and apology." The Dhillon Law Group's letter to Olbermann (found here) is similar in its demands.
Gabbard joined Tucker Carlson after the cease and desist letters were sent to discuss the move and what Romney's apparent definition of "treasonous" means for those who also serve in the United States military.
When powerful, influential people make baseless accusations of treason, they are sending a message to all Americans: if you dare to criticize the establishment's narrative, you will be smeared and discredited. If this is allowed to continue, our democracy will be no more. pic.twitter.com/U3QlL8HZxp
— Tulsi Gabbard ?? (@TulsiGabbard) April 22, 2022
If Romney's claim about Gabbard sounds familiar, it should. Mitt Romney, who hasn't sounded like a Republican for a while, is now apparently plagiarizing his talking points directly from...Hillary Clinton. During the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, the former Secretary of State and serial presidential campaign loser claimed that the Kremlin was "grooming" a Democrat running for the nomination before singling out Gabbard as a "Russian asset."
Join the conversation as a VIP Member