I watched the entire Tulsi Gabbard Confirmation hearing, so you wouldn’t have to.
The entire confirmation hearing is here if you want to watch all of it.
The transcript of the hearing is below:
I’m making this video free on Substack for both free and paid subscribers. If you want to watch it on YouTube the link is here:
Lieutenant Colonel Tulsi Gabbard is a truly American story.
She’s of Samoan and European ancestry. She’s a Hindu. She served as a state representative, a city councilwoman and a Representative for Hawaii. She was also an Army medic who went to officer training, eventually running a Military Police platoon and later a Civil Affairs battalion.
In 2020 she ran for president of the United States.
But in her rush to popularity, the very mechanisms that gave her popular appeal also raise serious questions about her judgement, especially for a position as vital as Director of National Intelligence who will brief the president every day.
Some of these positions are:
Her tweet blaming the US and NATO for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Her appearance on Charlie Kirk where she called Ukraine a “Proxy War of regime change.” (07:27)
Note that it is understandable that being a good podcast guest requires a level of outrageousness. However, one should be wary when the performance aids our adversaries.
Note that during the confirmation process, the Wall Street Journal released an article (may be paywalled) titled “As a Rising Political Star, Gabbard Paid to Mask Her Sect’s Ties to Alleged Scheme.” This detailed LTC Gabbard’s efforts to distance herself from a pyramid scheme connected to her Hindu sect.
Article 6 of the US Constitution specifically forbids any kind of religious test for public office.
Much of the testimony revolved around Edward Snowden, who was mentioned 62 times. Edward Snowden was a government IT contractor who stole state secrets, eventually releasing those secrets to the press and fleeting to Russia. You can read his account of the story in his autobiography Permanent Record.
FISA 702 is a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act which permits the government to conduct targeted surveillance of foreign persons located outside the United States. Typically, conducting a search for a US Citizen would require a warrant except under very specific “ticking time bomb” scenarios. A brief explanation is below:
Of the footage I watched, the most disturbing part of the dismissal of TikTok as just another data collection tool. TikTok is a cyberweapon. My video on the topic is below:
Previous Directors of National Intelligence were:
Note that all of the above directors had some form of intelligence role in either the intelligence community, in their political careers, or while in foreign service.
Also note that it is extremely rare that a cabinet official does not get confirmed by the Senate. Typically, a controversial appointee withdraws their name before a vote.
Roughly 95% of nominees are eventually confirmed by the Senate.
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