Tulsi Gabbard, the former congresswoman from Hawaii nominated by Donald Trump to be the next Director of National Intelligence, is facing serious accusations from her former staffers. According to interviews with three of her ex-aides, Gabbard regularly followed and shared content from Russian state media, even after being warned that outlets like RT (Russia Today) were unreliable.
ABC News reported that Gabbard, who served in Congress for years, often read and spread articles from RT, a Russian government-controlled news outlet. This was despite repeated advice that RT wasn’t a credible source of information.
Gabbard’s ties to Russia have raised eyebrows for a long time. In 2017, she sent a memo to her staff blaming the U.S. and NATO for provoking Russia and even complaining about America’s “hostility” toward Russian President Vladimir Putin. In the memo, she wrote, “There certainly isn’t any guarantee to Putin that we won’t try to overthrow Russia’s government. In fact, I’m pretty sure there are American politicians who would love to do that.”
During her 2020 presidential campaign, Gabbard took a strong stance against U.S. involvement in Syria, calling it a “regime change war” in support of Bashar al-Assad, a Russian ally. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Gabbard placed some of the blame on Ukraine’s efforts to join NATO, a position that upset many in Washington, especially in the national security community.
Despite her military background in the U.S. Army Reserve, Gabbard has no experience in intelligence, which could complicate her confirmation process for the DNI position.
Now, her pro-Russia views are drawing more attention. “Behind closed doors, people think she might be compromised,” one Republican Senate aide told reporters. “There are members of our conference who think she’s a [Russian] asset.”
So far, Gabbard has managed to fly under the radar, but as these concerns about her ties to Russia grow, it looks like her nomination could face a rough road ahead. Trump has already seen two of his nominees drop out, and with other picks stirring controversy, Gabbard’s confirmation is becoming more uncertain.
Despite concerns, Brian O’Neill, a former senior intelligence official, believes career intelligence professionals can help shape Gabbard’s understanding of global events. “New appointees always bring preconceptions,” O’Neill said, “but they’ll be guided by solid, evidence-based briefings from experts.”
However, he cautioned that Trump’s well-known hostility toward the intelligence community could influence Gabbard’s approach. “If she shares his skepticism, there’s a risk she might ignore or downplay important intelligence.”
