Tulsi Gabbard elevated in Iowa by Clinton spat

Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, holds a town hall on Oct. 3 at Keene State College in Keene, N.H. (Kristopher Radder/The Brattleboro Reformer via AP)

WEST BRANCH, Iowa — Hillary Clinton’s suggestion this past week that Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is being “groomed” by Russians to act as a spoiler in the 2020 race may have had the opposite effect of what the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee intended: It’s elevated Gabbard’s candidacy and may have inspired even more ardent interest in her campaign among Clinton critics.