Trump Reportedly Became ‘Incensed’ at Tulsi Gabbard Over ‘Unauthorized Video’ in Which She Slammed ‘Warmongers’
Photo/Alex Brandon
By most accounts, President Donald Trump has largely sidelined Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. On Tuesday night, Politico dropped a report explaining why.
Trump has publicly backed Israel’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities and its assassinations of military leaders and nuclear scientists, even after he reportedly urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to do so. The president was apparently so impressed with the operation, he supported the strikes, which upended nuclear negotiations between his Middle East envoy and Iranian officials. Iran has now abandoned those talks. Netanyahu has claimed for decades that Iran is on the verge of developing nuclear weapons, which Israel has but has never acknowledged.
Gabbard, a U.S. Army Reservist and former Democratic congresswoman who has long opposed military interventionism, endorsed Trump for president and was rewarded with her current position. However, she has not exactly endeared herself to the president. On Tuesday morning, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins pointed to testimony Gabbard gave to Congress in March, when she said U.S. intelligence did not indicate Iran was building a nuclear weapon.
“I don’t care what she said,” Trump replied. “I think they were very close to having one.”
Hours later, Politico reported that Gabbard had “incensed” Trump thanks to an “unauthorized video” she posted on social media:
At 5:30 a.m. on June 10, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard tweeted a cryptic, three-minute video warning that “political elite and warmongers” are “carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers” — and that the world is “on the brink of nuclear annihilation.”
Trump saw the unauthorized video and became incensed, complaining to associates at the White House that she had spoken out of turn, according to three people familiar with the episode — two of them inside the administration and all granted anonymity to describe sensitive dynamics.
Her post came a few days after Israel hawks met with Trump at the White House to lobby him to support Israel’s attacks on Iran. In the eyes of Trump and some close to him, Gabbard was warning him not to greenlight Israel attacking Iran. Trump even expressed his disapproval to her personally, the three people said.
One anonymous senior administration official told the publication, “I don’t think he dislikes Tulsi as a person … But certainly the video made him not super hot on her … and he doesn’t like it when people are off message.”
A Gabbard ally disputed that Gabbard has been informally relegated and said she and Trump are aligned on the president’s approach to Iran.
Politico also said Vice President JD Vance’s team sent a statement from Vance – unprompted – expressing confidence in Gabbard.
“Tulsi Gabbard is a veteran, a patriot, a loyal supporter of President Trump, and a critical part of the coalition he built in 2024,” Vance said.
