HUDSON – After enduring criticism from other candidates during Wednesday’s fifth Democratic presidential debate in Atlanta, presidential hopeful Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii hit the campaign trail again, hosting a town hall-style event in Hudson via video conference call on Thursday.

Gabbard was unable to deliver her Aloha spirit to attendees in person Thursday night because she was still in Atlanta and battling a cold.

Gabbard said during the debate, she and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg clashed on the use of military force in Mexico, while California’s Kamala Harris bashed Gabbard for appearing on Fox News.

“I think really the question comes down to two things: Who can win in November of 2020 and just as if not more importantly, who can actually bring people together both in Washington and across the country to be able to lead and implement these changes, and actually solve the problems,” Gabbard said. “That’s what it comes down to, solving problems.”

One such problem is addressing health care, and as Gabbard travels across the country, she is hearing from people, both Democrat and Republican, who share a lot of the same concerns, which boil down to one thing. If someone, or a loved one, is sick and in need of care, they do not want to have to think about whether they have $5,000 to cover a deductible, or how much money they need to have in pocket to receive care, or if the provider they are going to is in or out of network. This is why, Gabbard said,her plan, Single Payer Plus, aims to guarantee quality health care for every single American, while taking out the high overhead costs that come from the insurance.

The plan also seeks to negotiate prescription drug prices with “Big Pharma” among other things. Additionally, it also provides people with the freedom to go and purchase supplemental, or other insurance, offering folks the freedom to do that if her plan is not for them, while not undermining the ability to ensure every single American has quality health care. However, for Gabbard, health care goes far beyond just physical health.

“We’ve got to make sure that as we’re talking about health care, we’re talking about the care of the whole person, your physical and mental health, and just like you may go and get physical check-ups once a year or as needed when you’re sick – like I am, I just went to the doctor earlier today – it’s just as routine to be able to go and get the mental health care that you need,” Gabbard said.

Moreover, Gabbard – herself a member of the U.S. Army National Guard – said the impact on military families of the ongoing wars is often overlooked. While veterans were recently thanked for their service during Veterans Day, she said the sacrifice, hardship, pain and struggle these service members and their families endure is immeasurable. For her, she did not understand this fully until returned from her first deployment at age 24 after being away in Iraq for 18 months.

“As president, this is something I take very personally and very seriously, and I’ll make sure that every single veteran and their family gets the care and the honor that they deserve,” Gabbard said.

Gabbard believes the country is long overdue for an honest assessment of all of the troops and bases around the world, hundreds of bases, some newer and some that have been there for decades. She also said by continuing to deploy troops to different countries around the world, especially if it is to wage regime change wars, toppling dictators in other countries, that this does not serve the nation’s security interests, but undermines them.

Gabbard questioned why do something that actually works against the interests of the American people. She said this is the change in leadership she can bring in terms of reducing spending. She highlighted the trillions of dollars that have been spent since the tragic events that unfolded on 9/11, and how that money could have been spent on health care, infrastructure, education and protecting the environment.

Adam Urquhart may be contacted at 594-1206, or at aurquhart@nashuatelegraph.com.