Senate confirms Tulsi Gabbard to lead national intelligence

By Thérèse Boudreaux
The Center Square

With a 52-48 vote Wednesday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as the director of National Intelligence, one of the closest confirmation votes of all President Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees.

Gabbard, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve and former Democratic representative from Hawaii, was one of Trump’s most controversial picks. 

As a congresswoman, Gabbard had criticized the Biden administration, saying it helped provoke Russia into invading Ukraine by publicly considering adding Ukraine to NATO. She had also supported pardoning Edward Snowden, a whistleblower who leaked classified documents about government surveillance programs.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, another controversial figure who barely passed the Senate, congratulated the new DNI on X, calling her “a fearless patriot” who he looks forward to working with.

Gabbard had faced strong opposition from Democrats, but also wariness from several Republicans during her confirmation hearing. When pressed on whether she considers Snowden a traitor to the country, Gabbard refused to give a straight answer, alarming lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

She promised, however, to prevent Snowden-like leaks in the future by promoting legal channels and punishing unlawful whistleblowing. Gabbard also pledged to restore Americans’ trust in the intelligence community by ending government surveillance of ordinary citizens and previous targeting of people of faith.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., expressed full support for Gabbard on X following the vote.

“Tulsi is an Army officer who has served our country faithfully and well for over two decades. I’ve known her for a long time, and we served in the same Capitol Hill reserve unit,” Graham said. “Every president deserves their team. Tulsi has the trust of President Trump, and I’m sure she will serve him well.”