Former national security adviser John Bolton blasted Tulsi Gabbard, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to be the next Director of National Intelligence (DNI), saying she has shown "an inclination to believe the most outrageous propaganda against the United States by some of its strongest enemies."
Speaking to POLITICO, Bolton, who has repeatedly criticized Gabbard since her nomination, cited as an example the unfounded theory about the U.S. conducting biological warfare research in Ukraine.
Bolton went on to say that the tendency "raises serious questions about her judgement." He described it as a "funhouse of mirrors" view of American foreign policy that "goes beyond normal political discourse in this country."
Bolton's reservations were echoed last week by nearly 100 former U.S. officials, who published an open letter blasting the decision. The letter was signed by former Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, former NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller, and former National Security Adviser Anthony Lake, among others.
The letter was addressed to Majority Leader-elect John Thune and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and it implored them to hold closed-door briefings when the Senate meets before approving Gabbard's nomination.
The letter highlighted concerns about a trip Gabbard took to Syria in 2017 to meet with now-fallen President Bashar al-Assad and her seemingly cozy relationship with Russian officials.
Gabbard traveled to Syria to "see and hear directly from the Syrian people" impacted by the civil war in the country, she said in a blog post. However, the trip's controversy relies on a meeting she had with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
At the time, the representative said the meeting with the Syrian leader was not planned. But when "the opportunity arose to meet with him," she did so because "we've got to be able to meet with anyone that we need to if there's a possibility that we could achieve peace. And that's exactly what we talked about."
The meeting between the two politicians has raised eyebrows since it occurred. While it is not uncommon for members of Congress to travel abroad or meet with foreign leaders, it is rare for them to do so with leaders who are accused of committing crimes against their own people or are seen as unfriendly to the U.S., The Washington Post reports. The fact that it was seemingly spontaneous also raised eyebrows.
Gabbard has also been criticized for an alleged relationship with Russia, The New York Times reports. During her campaign, the Representative sparred with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who said Russia was backing the Hawaii native and that she was a Kremlin favorite who was supported by its propaganda apparatus. Gabbard responded by calling Clinton the "queen of warmongers."
After Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Gabbard posted a video on social media repeating a false claim pushed by the Kremlin that the U.S. was funding biological weapons labs in Ukraine. The claim prompted Senator Mitt Romney, R-Utah, to say Gabbard was "parroting false Russian propaganda."
As director of national intelligence, Gabbard will oversee agencies like the CIA, FBI and the National Security Agency (NSA). She will require Senate confirmation to take the role. If she is confirmed to the role, she would manage a budget of more than $70 billion and oversee 18 intelligence agencies.
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