Gabbard’s past could complicate U.S. Senate confirmation

In important ways, Tulsi Gabbard’s professional experience makes her ideal to serve in the second Trump administration.

She is a military veteran and a former congresswoman who is comfortable in public and with the media. Gabbard is one of a handful of women appointed to the Trump administration so far, and a woman of color in a party not widely known for its racial and ethnic diversity.

Gabbard became the first Hindu member of Congress when she was elected to represent Hawaii in 2012 took her oath of office with her hand on the Bhagavad Gita.

But Gabbard, 43, also has considerable baggage, most notably her support for autocratic leaders like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Syria’s Bashar al-Assad.

The former congresswoman has also been dogged by her longstanding ties to the Science of Identity Foundation and its founder, Chris Butler. The Science of Identity Foundation is an offshoot of Hare Krishna which former members have described as a cult.

Within minutes of announcing Gabbard’s nomination, national media outlets such as CNN predicted that her selection and the choice of Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as US Attorney General would lead to a threat. major confirmation battles.

The position Trump nominated her for director of national intelligencerequires Senate confirmation. The director leads the U.S. intelligence community, which oversees and directs the implementation of the National Intelligence Program.

The director serves as principal advisor to the President, the National Security Council, and the Homeland Security Council on matters related to national security.

Democrats are already mobilizing against Gabbard’s nomination. The Democratic National Committee issued a press release on Wednesday saying Trump’s nomination of Gabbard “puts Americans at risk,” citing news articles about her ties to al-Assad and affinity for Russian talking points.

When asked Wednesday about Gabbard’s nomination, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, noted the importance of the chamber’s “advise and consent” role in confirming presidential nominees.

“These are extremely serious jobs,” Warner said. “I have a lot of questions.”

And while Republicans will control the White House and both chambers of Congress in January, the Senate has 53 Republicans and 46 Democrats and one independent, meaning Gabbard can afford little defection from the Republican Party. Newly elected Vice President J.D. Vance could be called upon to cast a tie-breaking vote.

New to the GOP

Gabbard only joined the Republican Party last month after endorsing Donald Trump for president in August. Just two years ago, Gabbard was a Democrat before becoming an independent.

To many Democrats, Gabbard is an ambitious, opportunistic defector. She was first interviewed by Trump for a possible role in his first administration after his surprise 2016 election.

In December 2019, Gabbard was the only Democrat voting “present.”tantamount to abstaining from voting, in the House’s decision to impeach Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress over his efforts to get Ukraine to investigate Biden.

While Trump praised Gabbard in a statement Wednesday as someone who “has broad support” from both political parties, she did poorly in her race for the presidency as a Democrat in 2020 and was a fierce critic of Hillary Clinton’s campaign in 2016 and Kamala Harris’ campaign this year.

Gabbard supported Joe Biden after abandoning her own campaign for president in 2020, but she also opposed many of his administration’s policies, especially its support for Ukraine.

A rising star

Gabbard’s career in politics was meteoric. She was elected to the Hawaii Legislature at age 21, but enlisted in the Army National Guard in 2004. Gabbard, currently a lieutenant colonel in the US Army Reserve, deployed to war zones in Africa and the Middle East.

Two years later, she served as a legislative assistant to U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka, a Democrat from Hawaii. She then had a brief stint on the nonpartisan Honolulu City Council.

Gabbard went on to serve eight years in Congress representing Hawaii, where she served on the Armed Services, Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs committees.

Gabbard distinguished himself by openly criticizing Hawaiian-born President Barack Obama over his handling of conflict in the Middle East, including his refusal to describe certain groups as ‘Islamic terrorists’. Gabbard upset colleagues on both sides of the aisle when she made a secret trip to Syria to meet Assad, who was accused at the time of committing war crimes against his own people.

In 2019, during Gabbard’s presidential bid, Clinton compared her to a “Russian asset,” something that drew a harsh rebuke from Gabbard, along with a defamation lawsuit. ultimately went nowhere.

Religious ties

In the early years of her political career, local media reported how Gabbard and her family were prominent figures in the Science of Identity Foundation, which has a history of embracing anti-gay rhetoric. But it didn’t seem to hurt her at the polls.

During her time in Congress, the national media largely ignored Gabbard’s faith — with the exception of a long profile in The New Yorker, which detailed her ties to Butler, Gabbard has identified someone as a guru, but some former followers have characterized themselves as a cult leader.

Her ties to Butler continued during her presidential campaign. Gabbard hundreds of thousands of dollars spent with companies associated with members of the organization, including one of its highest-paid consultants who lived in a remote town in Washington State.

Since leaving Congress, Gabbard has been openly skeptical of U.S. support for Ukraine and has even faced criticism for sharing Russian-backed conspiracy theories. proven to be unfoundedabout US funding of biological weapons laboratories in the country.

Hawaii State Rep. Gene Ward said Gabbard’s appointment is a proud moment for Hawaii because the state has not had many people in high-ranking positions. Ward himself served for five years under the second Bush administration at the United States Agency for International Development.

“I think she will do a good job,” said Ward, a Republican. “She got her head screwed on. She has always been precocious, in a sense, as a mover and shaker. And there are enough checks and balances within the intelligence community to ensure that the course is clean.”

Ward added that the main reason Gabbard was selected is her loyalty to Trump.

Neal Milner, a former political science professor at the University of Hawaii and Civil Beat columnist, agreed. But Milner said Gabbard is not qualified to be director of national intelligence.

“She certainly doesn’t have the experience,” Milner said, and the appointment would cause mainstream professionals in the intelligence community to “go crazy.” He rewards her for her loyalty. He gave her a position that was probably above her pay grade.”

Democratic Governor Josh Green was slightly more enthusiastic about the appointment.

“I have known Tulsi for a long time and hope she can bring some aloha to the new government,” he said in a comment on social media platform X. “This will be an era that truly tests humanity. our willingness to treat vulnerable people with compassion.”