From PBS NewsHour.

Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard made her opening statement Thursday in her confirmation hearing to be President Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence.

Gabbard is a veteran of the Army National Guard of more than two decades who deployed to Iraq and Kuwait during her service. She does not have a background in intelligence and has come under fire as a nominee for her past positive stances on Russian President Vladimir Putin and former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Gabbard was the first American Samoan and the first Hindu elected to Congress. A former Democrat who ran for president in 2020, she became an independent in 2022 before endorsing Trump’s comeback campaign.

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