BURSTFormer Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii), President-elect Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, met Tuesday with senators on Capitol Hill as she faces concerns from Republicans over her controversial positions sympathetic to U.S. adversaries like Russian President Vladimir Putin and now-deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Senator-elect Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), said he expected Gabbard’s nomination “to sail right through,” standing next to the former Hawaii congresswoman after their meeting.
“Our job here as a Republican conference is to get the nominees through as quickly as possible. We’re seeing incredible momentum, obviously, Moreno said. He said he expects Gabbard's nomination "to sail right through" and that "we feel really positive about getting her nomination across the finish line."
But behind closed doors, Republican senators are skeptical about Gabbard's foreign policy positions and trustworthiness when vetting her to lead the office responsible for convening 18 intelligence agencies.
Gabbard, standing next to Moreno, said she is honored to have been invited to be part of Trump’s team and was grateful for the senator's support.
“We had a great conversation and your home state has always been very welcoming to me, and it’s really exciting to see how many Americans have come together and are eager for the work to begin under this new administration,” she said.
Gabbard represented Hawaii in the House as a Democrat from 2013 to 2021. She left the House after a failed bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination and left the Democratic Party in 2022 to become an independent.
Gabbard endorsed Trump in August and joined the Republican Party in October.