(Photo Credit: Reuters / Toby Melville)

Twitter CEO supports Iraq War veteran and Congresswoman

Federal Election Commission records show that Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter, donated to obscure Democratic candidate Tulsi Gabbard the day after the first Democratic debates. Gabbard, an Iraq War veteran and Congresswoman from Hawaii, has been polling at less than 1 percent throughout the campaign–but Google searches for her name surged after her strong performance in the debates.

“In FEC filings, Jack Dorsey is listed as maxing out to Tulsi Gabbard the day after the debate,” Buzzfeed’s Katherine Miller tweeted.

Gabbard’s political views are outside the mainstream of the Democratic party. For starters, she describes herself as a foreign policy “hawk” when it comes to fighting terrorism, but says she is generally anti-war. She has defended Syrian dictator Bashir al-Assad, and even met with him a few years ago. Some describe Gabbard’s views as more libertarian than liberal.

Dorsey’s political views are poorly understood and controversial as well. Dorsey has faced criticism from both sides of the political spectrum for failing to crack down on the “alt-right,” or the extreme right wing. But many right-wingers have also accused Dorsey of censoring conservatives and “shadow banning” right-wing voices on Twitter.

Despite Dorsey’s support, Gabbard is still considered a long-shot presidential candidate. Despite a surge in interest in Gabbard after the first round of debates, she is still polling around 1 percent in the crowded field of candidates.