Tulsi Gabbard resigns as US director of national intelligence

Tulsi Gabbard resigned as U.S. Director of National Intelligence on Friday, citing her husband's recent diagnosis with a rare form of bone cancer. Her resignation is effective June 30. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that the White House forced her out. Deputy Director Aaron Lukas will serve as acting director in her place.

Why did Tulsi Gabbard resign as director of national intelligence?

Gabbard cited her husband Abraham's diagnosis with an extremely rare form of bone cancer as her reason for leaving. In a letter to President Trump posted on X, she wrote that she needed to step away from public service to be by his side and support him through the coming weeks and months. Reuters separately reported that the White House had forced her resignation.

Was Tulsi Gabbard at odds with Trump over the Iran war?

Gabbard appeared increasingly sidelined in the months leading up to the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. She was reportedly not in the room when Trump met with his top advisors ahead of the strikes. After the war began, she repeatedly declined to endorse Trump's claim that Iran posed an imminent threat, the justification the administration used for launching the strikes.

Testifying to Congress, she stressed that the decision to strike was "the responsibility of the president." She also said U.S. intelligence had concluded that Iran was not rebuilding the nuclear enrichment capacities destroyed by the United States and Israel, a finding that cut against another key justification the administration had offered for the war.

Who is Tulsi Gabbard and what was her background before the role?

Gabbard, 45, is a former Democratic congresswoman and Iraq war veteran who made a surprising switch to the Republican Party before Trump appointed her to lead the U.S. intelligence community. As a congresswoman, she had expressed opposition to military action against Iran and faced scrutiny over a 2017 meeting with then-Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. She also drew criticism for promoting narratives aligned with Kremlin positions, particularly around the war in Ukraine.

Her appointment was regarded with suspicion by some in Congress over her views on government surveillance and her support for NSA leaker Edward Snowden. Trump pressed ahead with the appointment regardless. She was one of the few women remaining in his cabinet at the time of her resignation.

Who will replace Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence?

Aaron Lukas, the principal deputy director of national intelligence, will serve as acting director following Gabbard's departure. Trump confirmed the appointment on Truth Social, where he also praised Gabbard's service. "Tulsi has done an incredible job, and we will miss her," Trump wrote, adding that she was right to prioritize her husband's health.