Hillary Clinton once called her a “Russian asset” – and that was when Tulsi Gabbard was still a democrat.
Of all the cabinet tips by Donald Trump, none of the Republican party caused so many reservations-and this is in an area that includes a candidate for health secretaries who have promoted the theories for the conspiracy of anti-accine. And a defense minister confirmed despite the allegations of strong drinking and aggressive behavior towards women who said in his autobiography that he left the US military after being branded as an “extremist”.
Gabard’s only national security experience is in the Hawaii National Guard, and she is known for sympathizing with dictators and accepting conspiracy theories, as well as dedication to a Hawaii branch of the Hare Krishna movement. Former employees described them as a regular consumer of the Russian propaganda network RT, and the Russian state channels have been publicly pleased about the nomination of “our girlfriend” Tulsi, as a host expressed it to direct the US secret service group.
Ward Elcock, former director of the National Secret Dienstagentur CSIS in Canada, told CBC News that gabbards are missing from any experience or qualifications for the position – which could affect the quality of the US secret services, which is dependent on Canada.
“This is neither a particularly complex nor a thoughtful person,” he said. “Nothing that I have read about her indicates that she has the background or experience or the knowledge to take the positions for which it is appointed by the Trump administration.”
US intelligence goalkeeper
The post of the director of the National Intelligence (DNI) was created after the attacks of September 11, which unveiled a lack of communication between the US secret services, says Wesley Wark, a historian of security and secret service that served two terms of office for Canada’s advice Council for national security.
“It’s a very powerful role,” said Wark. “In the Canadian context, there is not really an equivalent.”
He said that the position of around 18 agencies delivers leadership and has an impact on leading appointments.
“But what is even more important (the DNI) sits in some ways in the right hand of the President,” he said, pointing out potential seat in the National Security Council and the supervision of the president’s daily letter.
Trump is known not to read these briefs anyway. But WARK says that Gabard, if it is confirmed, “will not only have an enormous impact on the collection and analysis of the American secret services, but also on intelligence that achieves allies like Canada through the five eyes and other parts mechanisms”.
“Lies and compromises”
Some in their own party have asked not to be confirmed. “The Ministry of National Secret Services is not a place for a Russian, Iranian, Syrian and Chinese sympathizer,” said Nikki Haley, who ran against Trump because of the nominated Republicans.
Gabard tried to prevent such criticisms in her opening declaration on Thursday to the Senate Committee.
“You will hear lies and cuts that question my loyalty and love for our country. Those who resist my nomination as Trump’s doll, Putin’s Marionette, Assad’s doll, the doll of a gurus, modis doll – did not recognize the absurdity, at the same time to be the puppet of five different marioneters.
However, some of the senators did not find their answers convincing.
“Some of her answers and non -considerations caused more confusion as clarity and only deepened my concerns about their judgment,” said the Republican Senator of Utah, John Curtis, after the hearing on Thursday.
Praise for Assad
Gabard’s foreign connections and travel pattern prompted the US transport security administration (TSA) to temporarily put them on an observation list.
She vigorously defended the cruel campaign of Bashar al-Assad in the civil war in Syria and contradicted the results of the US secret services that Assad had used chemical weapons against its own civilian population-a supported statement.
Within a few hours after the great invasion of Ukraine in Russia in February 2022, Gabbard went to Twitter to blame the West that he had not recognized “Russia’s legitimate security concerns”.
She also spread the Russian claims that Ukraine had developed biowaffe in Cahoots with the US government, and described the democratically elected government of Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “corrupt autocracy”, while it is particularly silent about the undemocratic government of Vladimir Putin.
‘An absolute blow’ in the west
“From the perspective of review, with regard to loyalty, reliability, it is completely unsuitable in view of the views she expressed,” says Dan Stanton, formerly CSIS and now director of the national security program at the University of Ottawa.
“It is very important that she has these views that contradict the five eyes and NATO in relation to Ukraine and Russia,” he told CBC News. “These are views that you expect to see on Twitter, not someone who has such a position and such a budget for surveillance before the Senate Committee. It is really discouraging.”
Stanton added that their past entanglements could possibly leave them open to extortion by foreign intelligence agencies.
“It is an absolute blow,” WARK agrees. “It indicates the willingness to listen to the Russian imperial propaganda without researching the basics of this imperial propaganda.” He says it is alarming that this is a position that the president seems to support with his DNI selection.
ELCOCK says Gabard seems to be reflected in the Trump administration in the US defense and the secret service, if not – until now.
Licks and moles
Even the Republican senators at Gabard’s hearing seemed to have problems digesting their support for Edward Snowden, the most productive delicious American secrets of modern times.
Snowden has long argued that he is patriotic and not unfaithful when he revealed details of illegal secret spy on the US secret service.
The Canadians, who spoke to CBC News, say that Snowden, while Snowden revealed real abuses, had nothing to do with it. Snowden has been Russian citizens since 2022 and has shown a significant reluctance to criticize abuses in Russia.
Gabard refused several times to answer whether she considered Snowden as a “traitor”, but said that he had violated the law.
“The insiders threat, leakage, moles, went on the climb,” said Stanton. “This problem has not disappeared and they are extremely harmful regardless of their political views.
“You have to protect yourself against it. And if the actual director of the secret service group has a likeable view of people like Snowden, this completely contradicts the practices of national security.”
From Russia, Snowden Gabbard relied on Elon Musks Social -Media platform X and encouraged her to throw him under the bus when it helps her nomination.
Five eyes not yet dead
The Canadian experts who were consulted by CBC News said that they expect intelligence parts to continue on the tactical level, and the USA will continue to be the largest intelligence collector.
According to Wark, Canada has traditionally rely on US intelligence agencies to “be the eyes and ears for Canada when it comes to global security threats”.
“I think for Canada is one of the great concerns about Gabbard that she is seen as an unreliable partner, that her judgments could not be trustworthy … a great wall of suspected would arise between Canada and the United States,” he said ” “He said,” he said, “he said,” he said, “he said,” he said, “he said,” he said.
But Stanton said whether the United States could trust intelligence from its allies.
“Five eye partners, especially the British, may be reluctant to share with the Americans,” he said.
“Canada collects very useful intelligence,” said Stanton. “Why should we share it with American agencies if there is a risk that it will be exploited by the White House for political purposes?”
Search for new partners
Elcock says that Canada is a net protection of his intelligence relationship with the United States, which finds the country, which offers Canada useful.
“It is possible that (Trump has been appointed) causing enormous damage and that sharing with the Americans, as a result, much more difficult and much less an accepted kind of business,” said Elcock.
Canada would be able to diversify his sources of foreign secret services by looking for new partners, says Wark, as it has to do in stores.
“The candidates would certainly share the Nordic, all of whom have pretty good secret services and more secret services with Germany and France. Turn to the region, ”he said.
“We have got used to the unique kind of alliance between the five eyes that we never really thought it is necessary to expand this relationship or count on someone. But times change.”
