Hawaii's Star Advertiser: Tulsi Gabbard's run for President brings questions about her past

and her connections to the Science of Identify Foundation, led by guru Chris Butler.

Her connections to the cult may be why she has already attacked Kamala Harris and Mazie Hirono, accusing them of bigotry against Catholics. She may be preparing for inevitable questions about her own beliefs.

One of the hallmarks of a cult is secrecy about its beliefs. This may be why Gabbard and people with the Foundation refuse to give interviews on her relationship with the religion. She promotes herself as a Hindu, but she was raised in a specific cult led by Butler, and has never publicly disassociated from him. (She has recently apologized for the hurt her statements on LGBT issues has caused.)

Her aunt, Caroline Gabbard, a retired professor at the University of Hawaii, has broken with Tulsi and questions where her loyalties lie.

https://www.staradvertiser.com/2019/01/27/hawaii-news/gabbards-run-brings-questions-about-her-past/?HSA=ff0cbd9b1e709ee386cede681c7c2283f031e855


Gabbard, who identified Butler as her “guru dev,” which roughly translates to spiritual master, in a 2015 video, didn’t respond to an interview request for this story, which included a detailed list of questions about her religious background, her relationship with Butler, and any influence he has had on her political career.

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Rick Ross, executive director of the Cult Education Institute, a New Jersey-based nonprofit that researches and advocates against destructive cults and movements, estimated he had been in contact with more than 100 people over the years who were involved in the group. He described Butler as a “dictatorial leader” who has exploited followers of his brand of religion.

“He is a hateful person. He is homophobic. He has said horrible things about the LGBT community,” said Ross. “And he is, to say the least, not exactly an icon of either idealistic or ethical living.”

Neither Butler or Jeannie Bishop, president of the Science of Identity Foundation, would agree to interviews for this story. But Bishop and the foundation’s attorney, Anthony Glassman, of Glassman Media Group, based in Beverly Hills, Calif., said in emails to the Star-Advertiser that various allegations that have been made against Butler by former adherents are untrue and suggested that criticism of the foundation and Butler has been motivated by religious bigotry.

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“Some unholy jumble of delusion and hubris, ignorance and lurching ambition, begs the question: to what and whom exactly is Rep. Gabbard loyal?” (Caroline Gabbard) wrote. “The fact this remains an open question does not bode well for Hawaii and beyond, and least of all for Gabbard herself.”