Tulsi Gabbard’s Opening Remarks to DNI Confirmation Hearing

Feb. 2—The following is abridged from Trump nominee for Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s written opening statement to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Jan. 30.

I’m honored and grateful to President Trump for his trust and confidence in nominating me to serve our country as the Director of National Intelligence at a time when trust in the intelligence community is at an all-time low. Chuck Schumer admitted, “You take on the Intelligence Community, they have six ways from Sunday at getting back at you.”

For too long, faulty, inadequate, or weaponized intelligence have led to costly failures and the undermining of our national security and God-given freedoms enshrined in the Constitution. The most obvious example is our invasion of Iraq based upon a total fabrication or complete failure of “intelligence.” This disastrous decision led to the deaths of tens of thousands of American soldiers and millions of people in the Middle East; mass migration, destabilization, and undermining of the security and stability of our European allies; the rise of ISIS, strengthening of al-Qaeda and other Islamist Jihadist groups, and strengthening Iran.

Here are just a few other examples:

• The American people elected Donald Trump as their president, but the FBI and Intelligence agencies were politicized by his opponents to undermine his presidency and falsely portray him as a puppet of Putin.

• Title 1 of FISA was used to illegally obtain a warrant to spy on Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, using a Clinton campaign-funded false dossier as their so-called evidence.

• Biden campaign advisor Tony Blinken was the impetus for the 51 former senior intelligence officials letter dismissing Hunter Biden’s laptop as disinformation to help Biden win the election.

• Former DNI James Clapper lied to this committee in 2013, denying the existence of programs that facilitated the mass collection of millions of Americans’ phone and internet records—yet was never held responsible.

• Under John Brennan’s leadership, the CIA abused its power to spy on Congress to dodge oversight, lied about doing it until he was caught—yet was never held responsible.

• Under Biden, the FBI abused its power for political reasons to surveil Catholics who attend traditional Latin mass, labeling them “radical traditionalist Catholics.”

• Just 24 hours after I criticized the Kamala Harris and her nomination, I was placed on a secret domestic terror watch list called Quiet Skies.

Unfortunately, there are many more examples.

President Trump’s reelection is a clear mandate from the American people to break this cycle of failure, end the weaponization/politicization of the IC, and begin to restore trust in those who have been charged with the critical task of securing our nation. …

I enlisted in the Army because of the horrific terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, and volunteered to deploy to Iraq in 2005 where I served in a medical unit. After nearly 22 years in uniform with three combat deployments to the Middle East and Africa, I am now a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve where I serve as a Battalion Commander of soldiers in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri. I served in Congress for eight years on the Homeland Security, Foreign Affairs, and Armed Services committees. My experience in the military and in the halls of Congress have given me a deep understanding of the complex challenges our nation faces. In both roles, I’ve engaged with world leaders and been privy to highly classified intelligence. 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.

Senator Collins, you led the creation of ODNI to address the intelligence failures of 9/11 and Iraq’s so-called WMDs. The need for the ODNI, under strong leadership, still exists today. If confirmed, I will bring my experience and fresh eyes to lead the IC. …

Before I close, I want to warn the American people watching at home: You will hear lies and smears that challenge my loyalty to and love for our country. Those who oppose my nomination imply that I am loyal to something or someone other than God, my own conscience, and the Constitution of the United States, accusing me of being Trump’s puppet, Putin’s puppet, Assad’s puppet, a guru’s puppet, Modi’s puppet, not recognizing the absurdity of simultaneously being the puppet of 5 different puppet masters.

They used the same tactic against President Trump and failed. The American people elected President Trump with a decisive victory and mandate for change.

The fact is what truly unsettles my political opponents is I refuse to be their puppet. [Emphasis in original.]

I have no love for Assad or any dictator. I just hate al-Qaeda. I hate that our leaders cozy up to Islamist extremists, calling them “rebels,” as Jake Sullivan said to Hillary Clinton: “Al-Qaeda is on our side in Syria.” Syria is now controlled by al-Qaeda offshoot HTS, led by an Islamist Jihadist who danced in the streets on 9/11, and who was responsible for the killing of many American soldiers. …

If confirmed as Director of National Intelligence, I will continue to live by the oath of I have sworn at least eight times in my life: to support and defend our God-given freedoms enshrined in the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic, and I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. Thank you for your time. I look forward to your questions.