Republican Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said Monday that Director of National Intelligence (DNI) nominee Tulsi Gabbard is likely in the most danger of not getting confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Gabbard has criticized the U.S. government for handing over billions of dollars to Ukraine and accused the “power elite” of risking Americans’ safety for the benefit of Ukrainians. The nominee has come under scrutiny from Democrats, including former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, for challenging the status quo on the Russia-Ukraine war and have publicly accused her of being a Russian asset and a threat to national security.
“I expect most if not all of [the nominees] to be confirmed,” Kennedy said. “Why? Number one, the president’s dug in like a tick. He wants these people. But number two, you’ve got to remember these confirmation hearings matter. If a nominee acts like a complete meathead or starts screaming like he or she is part of a prison riot, people are gonna say ‘woah, we need to take a second look.’ But short of that, I think most if not all will be confirmed. The one most on the bubble, as you know as well as I do, is Tulsi Gabbard.”
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A handful of Republican senators whose campaigns have received money from the defense industry could possibly oppose Gabbard’s nomination due to her opposition to the U.S. spending over $200 billion since the beginning of the ongoing Ukraine war and the national security apparatus’ spying powers. Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a notable defense hawk, told NBC News’ Kristen Welker Sunday that he is “inclined” to vote in favor of Gabbard’s nomination and the remainder of the nominees.
Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz accused Gabbard of likely being a “Russian asset” and Democratic Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth told CNN’s Dana Bash that she believes Gabbard is “compromised” and will be unable “to pass a background check.”
The DNI nominee has faced scrutiny over her 2017 meeting with dictator Bashar al-Assad, which Gabbard said to have visited in order to “achieve peace” and to “profess to truly care about the Syrian people.” In response to the meeting,
“I want to address the issue that’s in the headlines right now: I stand in full support and wholeheartedly agree with the statements that President Trump has made over these last few days with regards to the developments in Syria,” Gabbard said. “My own views and experiences have been shaped by my multiple deployments and seeing first-hand the costs of war and the threat of Islamist terrorism. It’s one of the many reasons why I appreciate President Trump’s leadership and his election where he is fully committed, as he has said over and over again, to bringing about an end to wars.”
Gabbard also faced backlash for having introduced a resolution in 2020 calling for all charges to be dropped against former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden, who was wanted on espionage charges after he disclosed in 2013 that the U.S. government was conducting mass surveillance on Americans.
The Senate committees are set to hold confirmation hearings for Gabbard, Health and Human Resources secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FBI director nominee Kash Patel on Wednesday and Thursday.
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