{"id":50066,"date":"2024-11-17T08:30:08","date_gmt":"2024-11-17T16:30:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/?p=50066"},"modified":"2024-11-17T08:30:08","modified_gmt":"2024-11-17T16:30:08","slug":"tulsi-gabbard-a-smart-choice-as-director-of-national-intelligence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/17\/tulsi-gabbard-a-smart-choice-as-director-of-national-intelligence\/","title":{"rendered":"Tulsi Gabbard, A Smart Choice as Director of National Intelligence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reprinted from Bracing Views<\/a> with the author\u2019s permission.<\/i><\/p>\n

Former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard has been nominated as Director of National Intelligence by President-elect Donald Trump. The so-called intelligence community is up in arms about this. That is a very good thing.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what Reuters has to say:<\/p>\n

WASHINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters) – President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s choice of Tulsi Gabbard as U.S. intelligence chief has sent shockwaves through the national security establishment, adding to concerns that the sprawling intelligence community will become increasingly politicized<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s nomination of Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman who lacks deep intelligence experience and is seen as soft on Russia and Syria<\/strong>, is among several high-level picks that suggest he may be prioritizing personal allegiance over competence as he assembles his second-term team.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Among the risks, say current and former intelligence officials and independent experts, are that top advisers could feed the incoming Republican president a distorted view of global threats based on what they believe will please him and that foreign allies may be reluctant to share vital information.<\/em><\/p>\n

Randal Phillips, a former CIA operations directorate official who worked as the agency’s top representative in China, said that with Trump loyalists in top government posts, \u201cthis could become the avenue of choice for some really questionable actions<\/strong>\u201d by the leadership of the intelligence community. [Emphasis added.]<\/em><\/p>\n

As if the intelligence \u201ccommunity\u201d isn\u2019t already politicized! And who sees Gabbard as allegedly \u201csoft\u201d on Russia and Syria? Hillary Clinton? The \u201cqueen of warmongers,\u201d as Gabbard memorably described her?<\/p>\n

Wow. We might get \u201csome really questionable actions\u201d by the IC (intelligence community). I\u2019m glad we\u2019ve never had any of those before.<\/p>\n

Tulsi has a wealth of experience in the military (she remains a lieutenant colonel), she\u2019s a former Congresswoman who\u2019s served on important committees dealing with national security, and she\u2019s tough as nails, having survived ruthless attacks on her character by the neocon Clinton wing of the Democratic Party. She is an excellent choice as Director.<\/p>\n

What Tulsi has is integrity. Honesty. Poise. Perhaps even more importantly, she has Trump\u2019s ear and his respect. As Director, she will oversee the preparation of Trump\u2019s daily intelligence briefs. Trump was notorious in his first term in office for not paying much attention to those briefs. He should do better with Tulsi, somebody he trusts, preparing them.<\/p>\n

Tulsi won my respect in 2016 when she supported Bernie Sanders and revealed how the Democratic presidential primary process was being fixed for Hillary Clinton. Tulsi has paid a high price for her principled stance, being smeared by Clinton and mainstream media outlets like NBC as a \u201cRussian asset,\u201d maybe even a stooge for Vladimir Putin. Politics is a rough game, but accusing a serving U.S. military officer and Congresswoman of being a \u201cPutin puppet\u201d is truly reckless and defamatory. Good for Tulsi for punching back.<\/p>\n

The establishment Democratic party hates Tulsi because she refused to play their game. She refused to bow to the Clintons. Tulsi has also questioned America\u2019s constant warmongering and knows a thing or two about the horrendous costs of war. She even has a normal life as a surfer. She has a connection to nature that I respect.<\/p>\n

Her poise, her toughness, her integrity, makes her a superb choice as DNI. The more the intelligence \u201ccommunity\u201d complains about her, the louder certain Democrats scream, the more certain I am that Trump has made a smart decision here.<\/p>\n

Recall when Kamala Harris vowed to put a Republican in her cabinet? Well, Trump has made Gabbard his DNI and RFK Jr. will lead Health and Human Services. He\u2019s picked two (former) Democrats for important posts and the Democrats can\u2019t stand it.<\/p>\n

On this occasion, with these appointments, I applaud Trump. You go, Tulsi. Ride the wave. Continue to serve our country as you always have.<\/p>\n

Update<\/strong>: Incredibly, Senator Warren has accused Tulsi Gabbard of being \u201cin Putin\u2019s pocket.\u201d Glenn Greenwald correctly terms this the worst kind of McCarthyite smear.<\/p>\n