GOP mulls breaking intel committee rules to jam through Tulsi Gabbard nomination

Tulsi Gabbard's nomination to be director of national intelligence appears to be in significant jeopardy, which is why Republicans are reportedly mulling breaking the Senate Intelligence Committee's own rules to get her over the finish line.

Politico reports that "some Republican senators are pushing for the unusual step of making public" the vote in the Senate Intelligence Committee to advance Gabbard's nomination, even though such votes have historically taken place behind closed doors.

"The talk of forcing open the committee vote underscores concerns among some Republicans that Gabbard's nomination could die before it even reaches the floor," writes Politico.

The biggest problem for Gabbard is that the committee at the moment is run by Republicans by only a single vote — and one of those votes is Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who has already defied President Donald Trump by voting against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

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One source tells Politico that Intelligence Committee rules do not allow for public roll calls detailing each individual member's vote, which means that having a public vote on Gabbard's nomination would require a change in committee rules.

Although Trump allies have been pressuring Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) to open up the vote for a public hearing, Politico says that it's "unclear" whether he has the power to make that decision unilaterally.

Gabbard has drawn bipartisan skepticism given her past statements about the Russia-Ukraine war that echo Kremlin propaganda, as well as her past meetings with former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.