Democrats Move to Delay Tulsi Gabbard’s Confirmation Hearing After Meeting Her: ‘Still Got a Lot of Questions’
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), the vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, spoke to reporters following his meeting on Tuesday with President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead U.S intelligence, ex-Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI).
“I went in with a lot of questions. I’ve still got a lot of questions,” Warner told reporters on Capitol Hill.
Fox News’s Chad Pergram summed up the Virginia Democrat’s remarks, quoting, “This is an extraordinarily serious job that requires maintaining the independence of the intelligence community. It also means maintaining the cooperation of our allies. We’ve got a lot of our intelligence from our allies on a sharing basis, and if those that information is not kept secure, it raises huge concern. So..we’ve got a number of questions out for her. This is the beginning of a process.”
Axios reported on Tuesday that Warner and other Senate Democrats have moved to delay Gabbard’s hearing. “Warner has pointed out that the committee has not yet received Gabbard’s FBI background check, ethics disclosure or a pre-hearing questionnaire, a source familiar with the matter told us. Committee rules require the background check a week in advance of a hearing,” reported Axios.
Intel Committee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) told the outlet in a statement he “intends to hold these hearings before Inauguration Day. The Intelligence Committee, the nominees, and the transition are diligently working toward that goal.”
“After the terrorist attacks on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, it’s sad to see Sen. Warner and Democrats playing politics with Americans’ safety and our national security,” Trump transition spokesperson Alexa Henning also told Axios.
Gabbard has long been seen as one of Trump’s more controversial cabinet nominees, giving her past statements viewed by critics as favorable to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and Russia’s Vladimir Putin. Gabbard also viciously attacked Trump’s foreign policy during his first term, going so far as to accuse the then-president of “pimping” out U.S. troops and being Saudi Arabia’s “bitch.”
