The newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump appointed Tulsi Gabbard, former Democratic Congresswoman from the U.S. House of Representatives, as Director of National Intelligence (DNI) last night.

She officially announced just last month that she was switching to the Republican Party.

“I am joining the party of the people, the party of equality, founded to fight against and end slavery in this country. It is the party of common sense, led by a president who has the courage to fight for peace,” Gabbard said. “You know, I was a Democrat for more than 20 years. Today’s Democratic Party is completely unrecognizable,” she added. “When you look at Kamala Harris’s party, for example, she is against freedom, supports censorship, open borders, and war with no desire for peace.”

The role was previously held by Richard Grenell, who served as acting DNI from February to May 2020, and was also Trump’s envoy for negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina.

Early Career in the Democratic Party

Tulsi Gabbard, the daughter of educators and small-business owners involved in local politics, began her political career in 2002 when she became the youngest person ever elected to Hawaii’s legislature, representing the 42nd district of West Oahu as a Democrat. She briefly stepped away from politics in 2004 to serve in the National Guard, where she was deployed to Iraq and Kuwait, before returning to Honolulu and winning a seat on the City Council in 2010.

In 2011, Gabbard launched her campaign for the Democratic primary in Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District. Despite being relatively unknown at the time, she defeated several rivals, including the former mayor of Honolulu. Her campaign was notable for its opposition to the wars during the Bush administration and for her changing stance on same-sex marriage, which she had previously opposed but now supported. She quickly gained attention within the Democratic Party as a “rising star,” as then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi described her, and her campaign was endorsed by President Barack Obama, who also invited her to speak at the 2012 Democratic National Convention.

Rise and Break with the Democratic Party

Gabbard entered Congress as the first Hindu and first American Samoan in Congress, as well as one of the first female combat veterans. She quickly advanced within the Democratic Party, being elected vice chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in 2013. However, Gabbard already showed a tendency for independent thinking, particularly when she publicly criticized Obama’s foreign policy. During the 2016 presidential election, she condemned the DNC’s primary process, claiming it was biased in favor of Hillary Clinton. That same year, she resigned from her post as DNC vice chair to support Bernie Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont, and delivered a speech in his honor at the Democratic Convention.

After Trump’s victory in the 2016 election, Gabbard met with the newly elected president, calling the meeting “open and positive,” and there was speculation about her potential role in Trump’s cabinet.

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Presidential Candidacy and Growing Split

In 2019, Gabbard launched her presidential campaign and announced that she would not seek re-election to Congress. During the campaign, her popularity remained low, particularly after she voted “present” during the impeachment trial of Donald Trump, which made her the “most disliked” candidate among Democrats. She stood out during a debate in which she criticized Kamala Harris for her past as a prosecutor, but her campaign did not gain support, and she dropped out in March 2020 to endorse then-candidate Joe Biden. She was not invited to speak at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

After leaving her political office in 2021, Gabbard became an even more vocal critic of the Democratic Party, frequently appearing on Fox News, where she occasionally hosted Tucker Carlson Tonight. She also supported Republican candidates and policies, and spoke at the 2022 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). In October 2022, Gabbard officially announced that she was leaving the Democratic Party, calling it an “elitist war-mongering cartel led by a cowardly woke movement.” She then supported several Republican candidates in the 2022 Congressional elections, including Ohio Senator J.D. Vance.

Joining the Republican Party and Future Plans

This year, speculation arose that Gabbard could become Trump’s vice-presidential candidate. When asked about this possibility on Fox News in March, she stated, “I would be honored to serve my country in that way and help President Trump.” After officially endorsing Trump in August, Gabbard was named, alongside former independent candidate and current Trump ally Robert F. Kennedy Jr., to lead Trump’s transition team if he wins the November election.

At a rally following her announcement of joining the Republican Party, Trump expressed his honor at her joining, saying, “Wow, that was a surprise.”

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Source: Nova.rs
Photo: AP

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