A woman who’s been on the short list of potential vice president picks for former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign will speak in Cheyenne this summer.
Tulsi Gabbard, a former congresswoman from Hawaii who left the Democratic Party, will speak as part of the Laramie County Republican Party’s Red State Summit in September at the Cheyenne Civic Center. Other speakers will be announced for the event later this summer.
Dallas Tyrrell, state committeeman of the Laramie County Republican Party, told Cowboy State Daily that multiple Trump staffers informed him Gabbard is on Trump’s radar for VP, which has also been reported by various media outlets.
During a March interview on Fox News, Gabbard said she would be “honored” to be picked by Trump for VP.
Who’s Gabbard?
Gabbard is seen as a potential magnet for swing voters because she’s a former Democrat, even serving as the vice chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2013-2016.
Gabbard ran against Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 primary, and gained national prominence in 2022 for her criticism of the Democratic Party, accusing its leadership of "cowardly wokeness, anti-white racism, (being) hostile to people of faith and spirituality and dragging us closer to nuclear war," according to ABC News.
Shortly after, Gabbard endorsed and campaigned for several Republican candidates in the 2022 midterm elections, including Trump-endorsees J.D. Vance and Kari Lake.
Symbolic
Tyrrell said having Gabbard come speak is strategic and connects to Laramie GOP’s larger goal to recruit more members. It’s likely a goal shared by the Trump campaign, as winning over swing voters is the key to winning modern American presidential elections.
“It’s why she’s being looked at for VP,” Tyrrell said. “The party needs to look at different perspectives.”
Tyrrell said the Republican Party could stand to take a new approach, and that it’s sorely needed. If Biden is reelected, by the end of his next term, Democrats would hold the Oval Office for 16 of the previous 20 years dating back to former President Barack Obama.
“We need a broader view to harness the most citizens,” he said. “Maybe we can do that by looking at things a little different.”
Tyrrell said the Civic Center has a maximum capacity of 1,500 people, and he expects the event to sell out.
The Laramie GOP has turned a corner with new leadership, receiving a great turnout for its Lincoln Day Dinner earlier this year.
“We’re open to new ideas, fresh ideas,” Tyrrell said. “We’re seeing what we can do differently and grow from there.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
