Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), the Democratic National Committee vice chair who said she was disinvited to the first Democratic debate, might wind up attending the Tuesday night event as a guest of the Bernie Sanders campaign.
Sanders’s campaign manager, Jeff Weaver, said Monday on CNN’s “New Day” that Gabbard could use a ticket from the Vermont senator’s campaign.
{mosads}”If she needs a ticket, have her give me a call,” Weaver said, adding, “I think we have a couple; we can give her one.”
Weaver’s comments came after Gabbard said she was disinvited to the debate in Las Vegas after calling for more Democratic debates.
“It’s very dangerous when we have people in positions of leadership who use their power to try to quiet those who disagree with them,” Gabbard told The New York Times.
“When I signed up to be vice chair of the DNC, no one told me I would be relinquishing my freedom of speech and checking it at the door,” she added.
A DNC representative told the Hill that the debate is intended to present a contrast with Republicans, saying Gabbard was asked to “prioritize our candidates.”
“The focus of the debate in Nevada as well as the other debates and forums in the coming weeks should be on the candidates who will take the stage, and their vision to move America forward,” the spokesperson said.
Gabbard and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, another DNC vice-chair, have for weeks called on party officials to allow for more than the six scheduled debates.
Sanders’s campaign has joined calls for more opportunities to debate, while former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley has accused party officials of limiting the schedule to help front-runner Hillary Clinton.
“We would love to have debates: The more debates, the better,” Weaver said Monday on CNN. “It’s healthy for the Democratic Party to have more debates.”
—Updated at 1:03 p.m.