(DailyVantage.com) – Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) labeled Tulsi Gabbard, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence, as “likely a Russian asset” during an appearance on MSNBC’s José Díaz-Balart Reports on Friday. Wasserman Schultz expressed concerns about Gabbard’s past actions and suitability for the role, which involves overseeing the nation’s intelligence agencies.
“Tulsi Gabbard is someone who has met with war criminals, violated the Department of State’s guidance, and secretly, clandestinely, went to Syria and met with Assad, who gassed and attacked his own people with chemical weapons,” Wasserman Schultz said. “She’s considered to be, essentially, by most assessments, a Russian asset.”
When host José Díaz-Balart pressed her to clarify whether she personally viewed Gabbard as a Russian asset, Wasserman Schultz replied without hesitation: “Oh, yes. There’s no question, I consider her someone who is likely a Russian asset.”
Wasserman Schultz argued that Gabbard’s nomination for DNI, a position that manages the entire U.S. intelligence community, poses a direct threat to national security. “She would hold all of our most significant intelligence information and secrets, and, essentially, would be a direct line to our enemies,” she added.
Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii and a 2020 presidential candidate, has faced criticism for her foreign policy positions, particularly her 2017 meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Her critics have often pointed to her stances on U.S. interventionism as aligning with Russian propaganda, though Gabbard has repeatedly denied such accusations.
The Trump transition team has defended Gabbard’s nomination, emphasizing her military experience and bipartisan appeal. Gabbard has not publicly responded to Wasserman Schultz’s latest comments.
The heated rhetoric surrounding Gabbard’s nomination underscores the contentious atmosphere as Trump assembles his Cabinet, which includes several unconventional picks that have drawn sharp criticism from Democrats.
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