Senate confirms Gabbard as intelligence chief
The controversial former Democratic lawmaker, now Trump loyalist, was sworn in as director of national intelligence
What happened
The Senate Wednesday confirmed Tulsi Gabbard, the controversial former Democratic lawmaker who became an ardent Donald Trump supporter, as director of national intelligence in a 52-48 vote. Only one Republican, Sen. Mitch McConnell (Ky.), joined the Democrats in voting against her. She was sworn in Wednesday afternoon in the Oval Office.
Who said what
Gabbard, 43, was confirmed despite "concerns among some GOP senators over her qualifications, her past favorable comments about foreign leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin and her refusal to firmly condemn" NSA leaker Edward Snowden, The Wall Street Journal said. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said if the Senate had voted by secret ballot, Gabbard "would get no more than 10 votes."
McConnell — "one of the last sitting GOP lawmakers who has exhibited a willingness to buck Trump," The Washington Post said — called it an "unnecessary risk" to confirm as DNI someone with Gabbard's history of "alarming lapses in judgment." At her swearing-in, Trump said she was a "courageous and often lonely voice" who would be "clear-eyed" and "focused on the threat of radical Islamic terrorism and lots of other threats too, threats from within."
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What next?
Gabbard will oversee the 18 U.S. intelligence agencies and set "broad goals for collecting intelligence," but there are limits to her "power and influence," The New York Times said. Her "most important job, arguably," is overseeing the president's daily intelligence briefing, and Trump will now have "someone aligned with his foreign policy views supervising those updates."
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