Gabbard's past could complicate confirmation by the US Senate

Tulsi Gabbard's professional experience makes her ideally suited to serve in the second Trump administration.

She is a military veteran and former congresswoman who enjoys speaking publicly and with the media. Gabbard is one of the few 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 and took her oath of office with her hand on the Bhagavad Gita.

But Gabbard, 43, also has significant baggage, particularly her support for autocratic leaders like Vladimir Putin in Russia and Bashar al-Assad in Syria.

The former congresswoman is also influenced by her longstanding ties to the Science 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.

Just minutes after Gabbard's nomination was announced, national media outlets such as CNN predicted that her election and the choice of Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as U.S. attorney general would spark major confirmation controversy.

The position to which Trump nominated her as Director of National Intelligence requires Senate confirmation. The Director leads the U.S. intelligence community that 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 national security matters.

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

Asked about Gabbard's nomination on Wednesday, 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 extraordinarily 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 is made up of 53 Republicans and 46 Democrats, plus one independent, meaning Gabbard can afford few defections from the Republican Party. Vice President-elect JD Vance could be asked to cast a tie-breaking vote.

New to the GOP

Gabbard joined the Republican Party just 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 renegade. She was first interviewed by Trump about a possible role in his first administration after his surprise election in 2016.

In December 2019, Gabbard was the only Democrat to vote “present,” which would be the equivalent of an abstention, on the House's decision to impeach Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress over his attempts to get Ukraine to investigate Biden.

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

Gabbard supported Joe Biden after she dropped her own presidential campaign in 2020, but also opposed many of his administration's actions, particularly its support for Ukraine.

A rising star

Gabbard's career in politics was meteoric. She was elected to the Hawaiian legislature at age 21, but joined the Army National Guard in 2004. Gabbard, currently a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve, has been deployed to war zones in Africa and the Middle East.

Two years later, she served as legal counsel to U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, a Democrat from Hawaii. She then served briefly on the nonpartisan Honolulu City Council.

Gabbard then served eight years in Congress representing Hawaii, where she was a member of the Armed Services, Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs Committees.

Gabbard distinguished herself by openly criticizing Hawaii-born President Barack Obama for his handling of conflicts in the Middle East, including his refusal to label certain groups as “Islamic terrorists.” Gabbard angered her colleagues on both sides when she secretly traveled to Syria to meet with Assad, who was then accused of war crimes against his own people.

In 2019, during Gabbard's presidential bid, Clinton compared her to a “Russian asset,” earning Gabbard a sharp rebuke and a defamation lawsuit that ultimately went nowhere.

Religious ties

In the early years of her political career, local media reported that Gabbard and her family were prominent figures in the Science of Identity Foundation, which has promoted anti-gay rhetoric in the past. But it didn't seem to have hurt her in the election.

During her time in Congress, the national media largely ignored Gabbard's faith — except for a lengthy profile in the New Yorker that detailed her ties to Butler, someone Gabbard identified as a guru but whom some former followers described as a cult leader.

Her connection to Butler continued throughout her presidential campaign. Gabbard spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on businesses linked to members of the organization, including one of her highest-paid advisers 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 been criticized for spreading Russian-backed, demonstrably unfounded conspiracy theories about U.S. funding of bioweapons labs in the country.

Hawaii state Rep. Gene Ward said Gabbard's appointment is a proud moment for Hawaii because the state doesn't have many people in high positions. Ward himself served at the U.S. Agency for International Development for five years during the second Bush administration.

“I think she will do a good job,” said Ward, a Republican. “She screwed her head. In a way, she has always been a precocious doer. And there are enough checks and balances, if you will, within the intelligence community to ensure that the course is clear.”

Ward added that the main reason Gabbard was chosen was 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 was not qualified to be director of national intelligence.

“She certainly doesn't have the experience,” Milner said, adding that the appointment would drive ordinary professionals in the intelligence community “crazy.” He rewarded her for her loyalty. He gave her a job that was probably above her pay grade.”

Democratic Gov. Josh Green was a little more enthusiastic about the appointment.

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