All posts tagged "tulsi gabbard"

'Privacy Act violation?' Trump 'lapdog' Tulsi Gabbard ripped for exposing undercover agent

President Donald Trump's director of national intelligence is facing blowback for exposing an undercover operative on social media.

Tulsi Gabbard, who heads up U.S. intelligence services, surprised Central Intelligence Agency officials last week when she included an undercover senior officer on a list of 37 current and former officials she stripped of security clearances, including individuals who had supported Trump’s first impeachment trial or concluded that Russia had interfered in the 2016 election, reported the Wall Street Journal.

"Gabbard didn’t know the CIA officer had been working undercover, according to a person familiar with the fallout from the list’s release," the newspaper reported. "Three other people with knowledge of the situation said that Gabbard’s office didn’t meaningfully consult with the CIA before releasing the list."

The intel chief's office delivered the list to the CIA the evening before she posted it on her X account but did not notify the agency she would publicize it on social media, according to three sources, and Gabbard said in a memo announcing the revocations that she was acting on Trump's orders.

“Director of National Intelligence Gabbard directed the revocations to ensure individuals who have violated the trust placed in them by weaponizing, politicizing, manipulating or leaking classified intelligence are no longer allowed to do so,” a spokesperson for Gabbard’s office told the Journal.

But intelligence experts say a "smart" director would have consulted with the CIA before making the list public to avoid exposing a covert officer.

“It could potentially put CIA cover procedures at risk. It could put relations with foreign governments at risk," said Larry Pfeiffer, a former chief of staff at the CIA.

The undercover officer had worked for more than 20 years in intelligence posts before being exposed by Gabbard and served as an expert on Russia and Eurasia on the National Intelligence Council between 2014 and 2017, and an attorney who has represented intelligence officers suggested the DNI had broken the law by following Trump's order.

“Can you say ‘Privacy Act violation’? I certainly can,” attorney Mark Zaid, whose own security clearance was revoked by Trump, posted on X. “Further proof of weaponization and politicization. The vast majority of these individuals are not household names & are dedicated public servants who have worked across multiple presidential administrations.”

Brian Fiarchil, a retired career CIA operations officer, questioned Gabbard's judgment and qualifications.

"Gabbard doesn’t know squat about intelligence," Fiarchil posted. "She’s simply a Trump lapdog who will do anything to stay in his good graces, and Trump hates the intelligence agencies.”

One powerful remedy would rid us of Trump — and he's scrambling to hide it

It has become increasingly apparent that Donald Trump is turning his presidential administration into the most corrupt in U.S. history. Nothing that comes from the mouth of Trump or his loyalist appointees can ever be trusted.

Trump appointees John Radcliffe, Kash Patel, and Pete Hegseth, heads of the CIA, FBI, and Pentagon respectively, reiterated Trump’s lie that the U.S. bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities “obliterated” the country’s nuclear program.

Damage assessments by the Pentagon Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) proved the claim to be patently false.

Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence, had testified to Congress that there was no evidence Iran was building a nuclear weapon. Since that assessment ran contrary to Trump’s reason for bombing Iran, Gabbard reversed course, lying that she had been wrong.

Trump’s Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, lied to the Senate Appropriations Committee that massive cuts in employee numbers are not intended to reduce the role or effectiveness of the DOE. In reality, McMahon is doing her intended job: to oversee the dismantling of the department at Trump's behest, to eliminate the federal government’s support for public education.

Attorney General Pam Bondi claimed months ago that she had the list of people associated with convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein sitting on her desk. Since such a list would embarrass Trump at the least or implicate him at the worst, she later contradicted herself and said that she was referring to all Epstein documents, not a specific associates list.

After releasing several monthly reports citing positive U.S. job growth, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported much slower growth for July. Since the report didn’t support Trump’s claims of a booming US economy, Trump attacked BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer, falsely claimed the numbers were rigged, and fired her. No doubt she will be replaced by a Trump loyalist, the veracity of the BLS jobs report never again to be trusted.

Trump’s consistent modus operandi is to attempt to alter reality whenever the truth doesn’t suit him and to get rid of anyone who doesn’t go along.

Trump continues to lie that the 2020 presidential election was fixed, that he had no role in inciting the violent January 6 Capitol riot, that he had no role in the fake presidential electors' scheme, that he didn’t attempt to coerce the governor of Georgia to “find votes,” and that he had the right to abscond with highly classified documents after leaving office in 2021.

His illegal acts earned him two DOJ indictments and potential prison time had he not been elected president.

Of course, Trump’s lying never ceases. To support his demand that the Fed lower interest rates, Trump lied that there is no inflation when the last report indicated a worrisome spike.

To humiliate Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell, Trump ambushed Powell on TV, lying that the Fed had grossly overrun its renovation costs by throwing in a building that was renovated five years ago. Powell called out Trump on the lie and reversed the humiliation, his days as board chair assuredly numbered.

The corruption at the core of Trump’s being has permeated the Republican-controlled federal government. The understood charge of all Trump appointees is to peddle his lies, gloss over his failures, and put their agencies and departments at his disposal. The vast majority of Republican congressmen share in the corruption, either by allowing Trump and his appointees’ lies to go unchallenged or by reinforcing them.

Think tariffs are a boon to Americans? That Trump has the gravitas to bend Putin and Netanyahu to his will? That greater consumer spending will reduce America’s gigantic deficit? That ICE is only going after immigrants with criminal records?

If so, the Trump administration’s perpetual lying machine along with a complicit Republican Congress is accomplishing its purpose.

When a democratic government loses the trust of the people, there is one powerful remedy: turning out the scoundrels who betray the American people with their every dishonesty. But Trump and his servile allies are banking on Americans being so dupable that we will continue swallowing their every deceit.

If they are right, we are fast approaching a totalitarian future where the truth is whatever guileful lie the government fabricates. If they are wrong, we the people will unceremoniously sweep them from office, beginning in 2026, and restore Americans’ trust in our democratic government.

Tom Tyner is a freelance editorialist, satirist, political analyst, blogger, author and retired English instructor.

These horrifying posts show how Trump and Gabbard fuel far-right threats

On July 18, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard made a post on Twitter alleging “the most powerful people in the Obama administration,” including former President Barack Obama, were involved in a “years-long coup” and a “treasonous conspiracy” against Donald Trump.

Her post quickly went viral, amassing over 13 million views over the weekend, and galvanized the online fringe to fantasize about violence against their political enemies. Trump fanned Gabbard’s flames, sharing a racist AI-generated video of Obama being arrested on Truth Social, which Trump owns.

Major news stories generally act as flashpoints for extremists online to ramp up their spread of hatred and advocating for violence.

This time was no different, as extremists, clearly inspired by Trump and Gabbard’s posts, were given new reasons to target their long-time nemesis, former President Obama.

The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism’s (GPAHE) research on unmoderated platforms like Truth Social, Gab, and Telegram, which are frequently used to spew hatred and share violent political fantasies, found that users directed racist comments at Obama, and his wife Michelle, and dreamt of political violence, suggesting Obama should face a firing squad or public execution by hanging, a crude reference to America’s dark history of racist mobs lynching Black people.

On Truth Social, comments made between July 17 and July 20 targeting Obama as treasonous and deserving of either imprisonment or execution rose to a high of 56 comments on July 19, reflecting a frightening 1,767% increase.

Gabbard’s post enraged Trump supporters who were quick to call for a military tribunal against Obama, demanding that Attorney General Pam Bondi “get them all now and don’t waste another day… The punishment for Treason is Hanging,” and that Obama and his former cabinet “should all [be] put up against a wall for a firing squad.”

One user expressed glee at the possibility of Obama being “prosecuted for the death penalty,” saying “I’m so happy finally accountability for that corrupt piece of dog sh–t.” Another called for “public trials and public executions” against former members of the Obama administration, saying “our enemies are from within not foreign,” sharing a similar remark from Vice President JD Vance, who in a February address to European leaders warned them of “the threat from within.”

On Gab, a platform similar to Twitter, comments made between July 17 and July 20 targeting Obama as treasonous and deserving of either imprisonment or execution rose from nine to 48, representing a 433% increase.

Users responded to Gabbard’s allegations by further accusing “commie Jews and black democrats” of “kill[ing] the American elections system.” Others exclaimed they weren’t satisfied with an arrest, saying “Obama should be prosecuted for treason, all asset ceases, and both him and Mooochelle deported to Tanzania,” but would “settle for a firing squad of all on [pay-per-view].” In the same comment, the user accuses Obama of being a “Radical Islamic Terrorist Sympathizer” whose goal was to transform America “into a socialist black terrorist sh–t-hole.”

Users called for Obama to be lynched, writing, “All you need is some rope and a little wood.” Others wanted to take justice into their own hands, including one user who claimed, “I WILL DESTROY AND JAIL ALL OF THE FAKE NEWS MSM ALL CRIMINAL POLITICAL HACKS AND ALL DEEP STATE PLAYERS WILL BE TRIED AND EXCUTED!!!!!!”

On Telegram, comments made between July 17 and July 20 targeting Obama as treasonous and deserving of either imprisonment or death rose from none to 12.

A manual review by GPAHE of private Telegram groups not immediately accessible by scraping revealed numerous other similar posts. Telegram channels, including ones associating themselves with the conspiratorial QAnon movement, were excited about the prospect of Obama being convicted of treason, which would lead to him facing “the rest of his life in federal prison or the death penalty.”

Other chat groups on Telegram, which associate themselves with far-right influencers such as Catturd and extremist groups like the white supremacist Proud Boys, had several users calling to hang Obama (“he should swing,” “let’s see him swing on national TV”), including calls to “hang them all” and “have a huge fireworks exhibition,” while others fantasized about “DOZENS of executions,” saying “MAKE PUBLIC HANGINGS GREAT AGAIN,” a reference to Trump’s motto, “Make America Great Again.”

Trump has long threatened his political opponents with persecution, dating back to his first election campaign against Hillary Clinton when calls to “lock her up” ran rampant at his rallies (Clinton was never charged with any crime). He’s since continued his assault on democracy by targeting judges who’ve ruled against him, and now Democrats such as Obama and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who Trump said should go to prison.

Trump’s targeting of the judiciary has already led to judges experiencing growing, targeted threats against themselves and their families. And there has been other horrific political violence. In June, a Christian nationalist assassinated Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL-34B) and her husband, seemingly with political motivations.

With violent rhetoric targeting Obama beginning to spread on fringe platforms, fueled by Trump’s and Gabbard’s posts, we risk further normalizing political violence which is already on the rise.

GPAHE’s research regularly reveals spikes in online bigoted and violent rhetoric whenever the president targets people with his online posts. The combination of Director Gabbard and President Trump’s conspiracy-laden and racist posts not only inflamed extremists, but further normalized language, racism, and other ideas that are completely unacceptable in a thriving democracy.

We, as a nation, cannot contribute to this normalization by staying silent.

Wendy Via and Heidi Beirich are co-founders of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism.

‘All kinds of questions’: Gabbard's Obama attack may give Dems Epstein opening

WASHINGTON — Republican House Judiciary chair Jim Jordan expects Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel to appear in front of his committee when the House returns in September, even though their appearance will allow Democrats to grill the pair about the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his close links to Donald Trump.

“‘They're going to get asked all kinds of questions,” Jordan said.

Jordan, from Ohio, wants to ask Bondi and Patel about documents released on Wednesday by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, as part of attempts to portray President Barack Obama and other top officials acting to undermine Trump after his victory in the 2016 election.

The newly released documents concern investigations of Russian election interference on Trump’s behalf and were drafted by House Republicans in 2017, when Trump was first in office.

Gabbard’s gambit was widely seen as an attempt to shift the spotlight from the swirling Epstein scandal.

Earlier this week, House Speaker Mike Johnson brought forward the August recess, as a way to block bipartisan calls for the release of files on Epstein, who died in federal custody in 2019.

At the Capitol on Wednesday, Raw Story asked Jordan: “Had you been in talks with ODNI about [the document release], or did you just learn of this today?”

Jordan said: “No, no, no … I did not know Tulsi was going to release this and what she did on Friday.”

Then, Gabbard released a report on investigations of how Russia interfered in the 2016 election in support of Trump, and their handling by Obama, former FBI Director James Comey, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and other top officials.

That prompted Trump to call for the arrest of Obama, which would be an act without precedent, and Obama to issue a rebuke in turn.

Jordan said: “We knew, based on the intelligence committee chairman … that he thought something was coming, that product they had worked on years ago, which is released today.

“We're going to see, I do know we're going to have Attorney General Bondi and Director Patel in front of our committee real soon.”

Raw Story asked: “On Epstein or on this?”

“On everything,” Jordan replied. “They're coming in for their normal visit. So they're going to get asked all kinds of questions.”

Raw Story said: “You know, Dems are going to want to just focus on Epstein.”

Jordan said: “Democrats, they ask whatever question they want, and Republicans ask whatever question they want. That's what happens when they come in.

“We’ve been working on getting Pam and Kash … in front of the committee weeks ago.”

‘I don’t think it’s gonna work’

Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Intelligence Subcommittee, branded the Republican moves as “ridiculous.”

“Well, again, it's their MO, which is they know they're hiding stuff on the Epstein files, and they're afraid of it, so they want to change the story,” Bera said.

“I don't think it's gonna work.”

Raw Story asked: “How good have [the GOP] become at normalizing the use of government to spread misinformation?”

Bera said: “That's important, right? Because you want people to pressure the federal government when they give you information … that's the sad part of what this place is becoming.”

Bera also had harsh words for Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020. Before leaving Congress, she drifted right and eventually entered Trump’s cabinet.

“Tulsi and I came into Congress together,” Bera said. “To see what she's become, it’s just ridiculous … at this juncture, there’s no backbone or spine.”

'Gabbard provides no proof:' Fight erupts between Tulsi and WaPo reporter

A feud has erupted between a Washington Post reporter and the nation’s top intelligence and security official after Tulsi Gabbard, director of National Intelligence, accused Washington Post senior reporter Ellen Nakashima of harassing her staff, an accusation that critics called into doubt.

“Instead of reaching out to my press office, she is calling high level intelligence officers from a burner phone, refusing to identify herself, lying about the fact that she works for the Washington Post, and then demanding they share sensitive information,” Gabbard said Thursday in a social media post on X.

“Apparently, publishing leaked classified material wasn't enough for the Washington Post, so now they’ve decided to go after the Intelligence professionals charged to protect it.”

Gabbard, who provided no evidence for her claim, also accused Nakashima of having “harassed and stalked” her family in Hawaii, another claim that she provided no evidence for, and was also rebuked by one of her former Washington Post colleagues, David Weigel.

“Not credible that Ellen, who's been at the paper since Bill Clinton's first term, would call sources ‘lying about the fact that she works for the Washington Post,’" Weigel said Thursday in a post on X. “Gabbard provides no proof here.”

As the Washington Post’s national security reporter, Nakashima has authored a number of stories on Gabbard, including a recent piece over Gabbard’s allegedly illegal interference in the Intelligence Community Inspector General’s office, potentially fueling Gabbard’s accusations.

Gabbard went on to characterize Nakashima’s reporting as an effort to sabotage President Donald Trump’s agenda, and called for the Washington Post to “put an end to this immediately.”

“This kind of deranged behavior reflects a media establishment so desperate to sabotage (Trump’s) successful agenda that they’ve abandoned even a facade of journalistic integrity and ethics,” Gabbard continued. “The Washington Post should be ashamed, and they should put an end to this immediately.”

'They can't back up his bluster': Lawmakers fume as Trump cancels Iran briefing

Congressional Democrats fumed Tuesday after the Trump administration abruptly canceled its scheduled classified briefing to bring the House of Representatives up to speed on President Donald Trump's decision to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities without authorization.

No follow-up date was provided, according to reports.

Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY) posted a lengthy complaint to social media, writing, "Trump just cancelled a classified House briefing on the Iran strikes with zero explanation. The real reason? He claims he destroyed 'all nuclear facilities and capability;' his team knows they can’t back up his bluster and BS."

Ryan continued, "They also can’t get their briefers on the same page. Every one of the people who was supposed to come today has a different conclusion on how close Iran was to breaking out and on how successful the operation was. Tulsi probably still doesn’t know it was cancelled."

Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) posted a list of the officials originally scheduled to give the briefing: National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine, plus the deputy secretaries of State and Defense.

Crowe called the last-minute cancellation, "Completely unacceptable," adding, "We deserve answers — now!"

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) wrote, "We require and the administration is obligated--per the Constitution and the War Powers Act--to give us information. At a minimum, the full committees of Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Intel need immediate briefings.

Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) demanded, "Congress must be briefed."

Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) seethed, "Today’s classified Israel-Iran briefing for the House by the Trump administration has been canceled because they don’t know how to brief about ever-changing, conflicting Trump positions—a bundle of contradictions. They don’t know what he will tweet or do next."

He added, "The only certainty is that thanks to his House GOP enablers, he will evade accountability, avoid seeking congressional authorization, and claim credit for any arguable positive development, whether he had anything to do with it or not."

The administration also pushed back its separate Senate briefing until Thursday.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) addressed reporters at the Capitol, saying, "What are they afraid of? It's outrageous, it's evasive, it's derelict. They're bobbing and weaving and ducking...There's a legal obligation."

'She's wrong': Trump snaps as he takes another shot at spy chief

President Donald Trump doubled-down on his claim that he knows better than his national intelligence team.

During a tarmac press gaggle, Trump was asked about his administration's intelligence.

"It looked like I'm right about the material that they've gathered already," Trump said. "It's a tremendous amount of material, and I think within a matter of weeks, or certainly within a matter of months, they're going to be able to have a nuclear weapon. We can't let that happen."

One reporter asked, "What intelligence do you have that Iran is building a nuclear weapon? Your intelligence community has said they have no evidence that they are at this point."

"Well, then, my intelligence community is wrong," Trump snapped. "Who in the intelligence community said that?" he asked.

The reporter answered, "Your director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard."

"She's wrong," Trump said dismissively.

Watch the clip below via CNN.

'Unraveling': Ex-Trump associate warns it's the beginning of the end for MAGA

Lev Parnas, a former associate of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani, claimed in a new Substack article that the country is witnessing the beginning of the end for the MAGA movement.

"One month ago, I told you cracks were forming," Parnas wrote, citing conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer echoing his warnings "about Russia’s shadow fleet, about Venezuela’s oil-for-access deals with China and Russia," and about "Qatar’s private jet 'gift' to Trump."

Parnas then shifted to the Trump–Elon Musk fallout, writing, "my sources — and believe me, these are real insiders, not cable pundits — tell me the truth is far from what they’re showing the public. Trump and Musk are finished. The relationship is over. Personal. Bitter. And escalating."

All these things point to "MAGA's digital empire" being ripped apart, Parnas wrote.

He maintained that MAGA is being "forced to choose sides — between the tech billionaire who gave them a platform, and the man who built the movement they worshipped."

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson also played into Parnas's prediction when he yelled at Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), then told Steve Bannon, “If Trump attacks Iran, it’ll be the end of MAGA.”

"That wasn’t a warning. That was a death sentence," Parnas wrote, adding, "Tucker is telling the movement: this man will destroy you."

Trump contradicting his director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, on Iran with a dismissive, "I don't care what she said," then voicing his opinion that Iran was "very close" to nuclear capabilities," was the nail in the coffin, according to Parnas.

"This is what authoritarian collapse looks like from the inside," Parnas wrote. "Trump is unraveling. His inner circle is splintering. And the movement that once blindly followed him — from Congress to Twitter to Truth Social to the Senate floor — is now eating itself alive."

Read the Substack article here.

Trump insider on 'thin ice' after 'boxing' in president as crisis mounts

Add MSNBC contributor John Heilemann to the list of Washington, D.C. insiders who believe that there is a growing schism between Donald Trump and his top intel adviser as the threat of a major war in the Middle East seems imminent.

Appearing on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Heilemann was asked by a report from Politico that Trump is "incensed" with DNI Tulsi Gabbard after she posted a video online that warned of a doomsday scenario of nuclear war that caught the Trump administration off-guard.

Combined with the growing tensions between Israel and Iran, where the very real threat of war seems to be growing as Trump strongly aligns himself with saber-rattling Israel's Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.

According to Heilemann, the president now finds himself "boxed in" by claims from members of his own administration and his growing public announcements that are contradictory.

With co-host Joe Scarborough calling Gabbard's video "a bizarre thing to do" without consulting with the president, he asked Heilemann about the divided administration.

"First of all, if you're going to in a conventional administration, if you're a senior official and you want to try to influence the president's thinking, you generally don't want to leave fingerprints, right?" a smiling Heilemann began. "So you go on background as a senior official or a source familiar in the New York Times. You don't put out a highly produced video with you speaking straight to camera."

"She's weighing in and speaking straight to camera, basically saying if the president does this, he's going to lead us to World War III," a laughing Scarborough interjected.

"It looks more like a Democratic attack ad than it looks like than a part of a product of internal debate inside the Trump administration," Heilemann agreed. "So Tulsi Gabbard may be on thin ice there because Trump does not like to have his –– to feel like he's been boxed in by people who work for him."

You can watch below or at the link.

- YouTube youtu.be

'Don't care what she said': Trump disses his own national intelligence director

President Donald Trump dismissed an assessment on Iran's nuclear capabilities made by his own director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, when asked about the situation on his way back to Washington from the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada.

Trump left the summit early on Monday, citing the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran that's raged for five days over Iran's development of nuclear weapons.

Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he was seeking "a real end" to the conflict, "not a ceasefire."

"So, something that will be permanent?" a reporter asked Trump.

"Yeah, or giving up entirely, that's okay, too," Trump answered. "A complete 'give up.' That's possible, yeah."

CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked Trump about DNI Gabbard's testimony in March about the imminence of an Iranian nuclear threat.

"You've always said that you don't believe Iran should be able to have a nuclear weapon, but how close do you personally think that they were to getting one?" Collins asked.

Trump answered, "Very close."

"Because Tulsi Gabbard testified in March that the intelligence community said Iran wasn't building a nuclear weapon," Collins continued.

"I don't care what she said," Trump snapped. "I think they were very close to having one."

CNN's Zachary Cohen noted Trump '"appearing to dismiss the testimony from his own top intelligence chief."

Cohen continued, "A senior U.S. official, also telling me that Iran is, quote, 'As close as you can get before building a nuclear weapon.' Saying further, 'They have all the things you need in order to do so.'"

Cohen said the timeline was important in determining the potential for U.S. involvement in the conflict, saying, "It seems Donald Trump has made up his mind, though."

Cohen said it remains to be seen what steps Trump would take to prevent Iran from fully developing nuclear capabilities.

"Yeah, ultimately, that's what's important here, probably in terms of U.S. action," said anchor John Berman. "What Donald Trump thinks the truth is."

Watch the clip below via CNN.