Tulsi Gabbard Defends Nomination Amidst Scrutiny

Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on Monday released a defense of her nomination to lead the Office of National Intelligence after some members of the Senate questioned her ties to Russia and stance on controversial figures like Edward Snowden.

During her confirmation hearing last week, Gabbard faced questions about her ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin due to accusations that she has repeated Russian propaganda about Ukraine in the past and she refused to directly answer when asked if she believes Snowden, who leaked classified U.S. national security documents about alleged illegal surveillance of U.S. citizens, is a traitor.

In an opinion piece published by Newsweek on Monday, Gabbard pushed back on the controversy over her response to questions about Snowden and defended her experience and capabilities.

Gabbard said that she declined to call Snowden a "traitor" because she doesn’t use the word "casually," adding that "Snowden should have raised his concerns about illegal surveillance through authorized channels, such as the inspector general or the Intelligence Committee, instead of leaking to the media."

"During my time in both Congress and in the military, I've engaged with world leaders and been privy to highly classified intelligence," she wrote. "I know first-hand how essential accurate, unbiased, and timely intelligence is, to the President, to Congress, and to our warfighters, and the heavy cost of intelligence failures and abuses."

She added: "As the President's principal intelligence advisor, I will begin with leading by example, checking my own views at the door and committing to delivering intelligence that is collected, analyzed, and reported without bias, prejudice, or political influence."

Gabbard went on to list four priorities she would have on day one, if confirmed: assessing "the global threat environment" and finding gaps in U.S. intelligence, ending the "politicization" of the intelligence committee, rebuilding trust in the U.S. intelligence community, and to "assess and address efficiency, redundancy, and effectiveness across ODNI."

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