Donald Trump’s pick to oversee 18 intelligence agencies with a $100 billion spy budget is facing renewed scrutiny over an unannounced trip to Syria in 2017 where she met with the now-deposed dictator twice.
Senators remain concerned about Tulsi Gabbard’s foreign contacts. In addition to meeting in 2017 with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad—who recently fled his country amid a rebel insurgency—Gabbard mig
Asked by Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich about her 2017 trip to the Middle Eastern country, Gabbard said she met with al-Assad and "asked him tough questions about his own regime's actions," including the "use of chemical weapons and brutal tactics being used against his own people."
The nominee for director of national intelligence espoused provocative takes on foreign policy during public appearances. Senators are expected to challenge some of those in her confirmation hearing.
Tulsi Gabbard says she now supports surveillance she once tried to end. The issue could decide whether she's confirmed as director of national intelligence.
Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump's nominee for Director of National Intelligence, testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday.
Analysis: Democrats grandstanded, but it might be the questioning of two Republican hawks that sinks Trump’s pick for Director of National Intelligence, Eric Garcia reports
Ahead of a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing Thursday, the fate of Gabbard’s nomination rests in the hands of a small handful of undecided GOP senators: Maine’s Susan Collins, Indiana’s Todd Young, Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell and Utah’s John Curtis.
DNI nominee Tulsi Gabbard provided additional details on her meeting with then-Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad in 2017, while appearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Facing more than a dozen questions about her views on NSA leaker Edward Snowden, Tulsi Gabbard held her ground at her Senate confirmation hearing.
Tulsi Gabbard is expected to face questions on her 2017 visit to Syria at her confirmation hearing for director of national intelligence Thursday.