Why is Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s new intel tsar, so controversial?
Al Jazeera
An isolationist in a role critical for US-backed wars, Gabbard’s positions on Iran, Russia, Syria and India will be watched.
United States President-elect Donald Trump has named Tulsi Gabbard as his director of national intelligence.
The Republican Party leader named the former Democratic congresswoman as part of a series of appointments to cabinet and other key positions in his administration. But his choice of Gabbard as the US intelligence chief stands out even among a line of controversial appointments because of her positions on key foreign policy issues over the years. Trump’s latest pick is drawing fire even from some Republicans.
So who is Gabbard, and why is her appointment so controversial?
Gabbard, 43, was the first Hindu in the US Congress as well as its first member born in the US territory of American Samoa. She was raised in Hawaii and spent a year of her childhood in the Philippines. She is also an Iraq war veteran, having served in the US military. Gabbard was also deployed in Kuwait.
She was a representative from Hawaii’s second district in the US House of Representatives for four terms from 2013 to 2021. While she was in the House, she was a Democrat. Gabbard supported Senator Bernie Sanders in his 2016 presidential bid. She also ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2020 as a Democrat.
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