Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump’s selection to become director of national intelligence, spent much of her confirmation hearing feuding with a screaming senator over Edward Snowden.
The 43-year-old former Hawaii Democrat and Colonel in the Army Reserves was pressed by Republicans and Democrats about where her allegiances lay left and right during the three hour session.
One of Trump’s most controversial Cabinet selections, lawmakers on the Senate Intelligence Committee fired off inquiries about Gabbard’s qualifications and past praise for adversaries of the U.S. government.
She notoriously has made favorable comments about Vladimir Putin and even visited ex-Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad in Damascus in 2017. She later referred to the criticized Syrian visit as a ‘fact-finding mission.’
Gabbard was peppered about supporting a bill while in Congress that would have pardoned former NSA analyst Edward Snowden, who leaked a massive array of classified U.S. documents before fleeing to Russia.
Lawmakers noted how his actions threatened U.S. national security – which Gabbard is now tasked with defending – not to mention the lives of countless personnel.
The exchanges over Snowden reached a contentious peak when midway through the hearing Colorado Democrat Michael Bennet began yelling in an ear-bursting tone at Gabbard over her refusal to call the turncoat a ‘traitor.’
Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump’s choice to be the Director of National Intelligence, appears before the Senate Intelligence Committee for her confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025
Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) questions Gabbard as she testifies during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on January 30, 2025 in Washington, D.C.
Gabbard tried to respond to Bennet but at times he yelled over her reply
‘This is when the rubber hits the road,’ Bennet yelled at Gabbard. ‘This is not even to make sure this is not a moment for social media. It’s not a moment to propagate theories or attacks on journalism in the United States.’
‘This is when you need to answer the questions of the people whose votes you’re asking for to be confirmed as the chief intelligence officer of this nation.’
Bennet gathered himself and asked Gabbard again: ‘Is Edward Snowden a traitor to the United States of America? That is not a hard question to answer when the stakes are this high … your answer yes or no.’
Gabbard began responding: ‘I understand how critical our national security [is].’
Bennet exploded again at the Army Colonel: ‘Apparently you don’t. Apparently you don’t.’
However, Gabbard refuted that she is anyone’s ‘puppet’ multiple times during the hearing.
‘Those who oppose my nomination imply that I am loyal to something or someone other than God, my own conscience and the Constitution of the United States, accusing me of being Trump’s puppet, Putin’s puppet, Assad’s puppet, a guru’s puppet, [or] Modi’s puppet, not recognizing the absurdity of simultaneously being the puppet of five different puppet masters.’
‘What truly unsettles them is I refuse to be their puppet,’ she added, referencing the unnamed forces against her.
Gabbard has said Putin is not solely responsible for the war in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at the Kremlin in Moscow on September 13, 2021. When the Syrian civil war ended this year with Assad fleeing the country he found refuge in Moscow
The committee’s chairman Arkansas Republican Tom Cotton, sought at the outset to ease concern about Gabbard’s record.
Cotton slammed Hillary Clinton for previously saying the Russians are ‘grooming’ Gabbard for later use.
‘First, I’m dismayed by the attacks on Ms. Gabbard’s patriotism and her loyalty to our country, for instance, Hillary Clinton has smeared Ms. Gabbard, calling her an asset of a foreign nation,’ Cotton said.
‘Let me remind everyone that Ms Gabbard has served in our army for more than two decades. She has multiple combat tours, and she still wears the uniform to this day,’ he said. ‘She has undergone five FBI background checks.’
‘I spent more than two hours last week reviewing the latest, putting eyes on more than 300 pages. It’s clean as a whistle,’ he added.
Lawmaker’s also grilled Gabbard on her past comments on Joe Rogan’s podcast that Putin is not the lone man to blame for the war in Ukraine.
Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in May 2024 before he was deposed and fled to Russia. Gabbard met with him in 2017 in a visit she dubbed a ‘fact-finding mission’
‘You hear President Biden say, ‘Well, this is Putin’s war, this is Putin’s fault. It’s Putin who’s the one who’s solely responsible.’ Well, the United States and some of these European NATO countries are fueling this war,’ Gabbard told the podcaster.
Gabbard later admitted in the hearing: ‘Putin started the war in Ukraine.’
Another testy moment came when Virginia Democrat Mark Warner noted that Gabbard may not have the legal qualifications for the role.
Warner also noted she may not have the experience necessary for the role as required by law.
‘I continue to have significant concerns about your judgment and your qualifications to meet the standard set by the law,’ he said.
When pressed on her apparent support of Assad’s dictatorship, the nominee said she does not have any qualms about the ex-leader’s deposition.
‘I shed no tears for the fall of the Assad regime,’ she said.
‘I have no love for Assad or Gaddafi, or any dictator. I just hate Al-Qaeda.’
