<p>Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard filed a defamation lawsuit against Hillary Clinton on Wednesday over an interview in which Clinton appeared to call Gabbard "the favourite of the Russians".</p>.<p>Gabbard, a Hawaii congresswoman, said in her lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan that Clinton's comments in a podcast last year in which she suggested that Gabbard was being groomed by Russia to be a third-party candidate were based on either her own imagination or "extremely dubious conspiracy theories" that any reasonable person would know to be "inherently and objectively unreliable".</p>.<p>During the October 15 Democratic presidential debate, Gabbard criticised a TV commentator she said had called her "an asset of Russia".</p>.<p>Without naming Gabbard, Clinton appeared to agree with the characterisation during a podcast appearance days later on "Campaign HQ with David Plouffe".</p>.<p>Plouffe was campaign manager for President Barack Obama in 2008 and served as served as a senior adviser to the president.</p>.<p>"She's the favourite of the Russians," Clinton told Plouffe, who was campaign manager for future President Barack Obama in 2008, referring to a person she had earlier identified as a woman "who's currently in the Democratic primary...They have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far".</p>.<p>The lawsuit charges that Clinton "reserves a special hatred and animosity for Tulsi" because Gabbard endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders over Clinton in the 2016 Democratic primary campaign and never endorsed Clinton.</p>.<p>Asked to comment on the lawsuit, Clinton spokesman Nick Merrill said, "That's ridiculous."</p>.<p>Gabbard, whose support among Democratic primary voters has averaged around 1 per cent in polls, has said she will not run for president as a third-party candidate.</p>
<p>Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard filed a defamation lawsuit against Hillary Clinton on Wednesday over an interview in which Clinton appeared to call Gabbard "the favourite of the Russians".</p>.<p>Gabbard, a Hawaii congresswoman, said in her lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan that Clinton's comments in a podcast last year in which she suggested that Gabbard was being groomed by Russia to be a third-party candidate were based on either her own imagination or "extremely dubious conspiracy theories" that any reasonable person would know to be "inherently and objectively unreliable".</p>.<p>During the October 15 Democratic presidential debate, Gabbard criticised a TV commentator she said had called her "an asset of Russia".</p>.<p>Without naming Gabbard, Clinton appeared to agree with the characterisation during a podcast appearance days later on "Campaign HQ with David Plouffe".</p>.<p>Plouffe was campaign manager for President Barack Obama in 2008 and served as served as a senior adviser to the president.</p>.<p>"She's the favourite of the Russians," Clinton told Plouffe, who was campaign manager for future President Barack Obama in 2008, referring to a person she had earlier identified as a woman "who's currently in the Democratic primary...They have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far".</p>.<p>The lawsuit charges that Clinton "reserves a special hatred and animosity for Tulsi" because Gabbard endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders over Clinton in the 2016 Democratic primary campaign and never endorsed Clinton.</p>.<p>Asked to comment on the lawsuit, Clinton spokesman Nick Merrill said, "That's ridiculous."</p>.<p>Gabbard, whose support among Democratic primary voters has averaged around 1 per cent in polls, has said she will not run for president as a third-party candidate.</p>