Tulsi Gabbard advances out of Intel Committee in boost to confirmation odds

Tulsi Gabbard passed a key committee hurdle on Tuesday, and her nomination will now head to the Senate floor where she’ll get a final confirmation vote. 

President Donald Trump tapped Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman, to be Director of National Intelligence (DNI) in his second term. 

“I’m pleased that the Senate Intelligence Committee voted to advance the nomination of Tulsi Gabbard to be the Director of National Intelligence. Once confirmed, I look forward to working with Ms. Gabbard to keep America safe and to bring badly needed reforms to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence,” Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said in a statement. 

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Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump’s choice to be the Director of National Intelligence, arrives to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee for her confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington.  (AP)

Gabbard was advanced out of the committee along party lines, 9-8.

She received a last-minute endorsement from Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., a member of the committee, minutes after the vote was scheduled to get underway.

“I will be voting today for [Gabbard] to serve as President Trump’s Director of National Intelligence. I’ve had the opportunity to work with Tulsi throughout the confirmation process, and I’m confident she will bring a fresh perspective to President Trump’s national security team and the intelligence community. Tulsi and President Trump have my support,” he wrote on X. 

Some issues the nominee has been pressed on during her confirmation process are her past meeting with former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, her previous FISA Section 702 stance and her past support for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. 

She faced questions about each in her hearing last week. 

Gabbard managed to impress some Republicans on the Intel committee with her answers, as both Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, revealed afterward that they would vote to advance her. 

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Gabbard left the Democratic Party and endorsed Trump. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., endorsed Trump’s DNI nominee last month after she announced her changed beliefs about section 702, a critical and controversial intelligence gathering tool. 

He reiterated this support after her hearing. 

However, there were remaining questions about certain senators up until the committee’s closed-door vote on Tuesday. Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., is one of the lawmakers that did not disclose how he would vote until hours before. 

In a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday, the senator said, “American intelligence officers around the globe deserve our respect and support. I appreciate Tulsi Gabbard’s engagement with me on a variety of issues to ensure that our intelligence professionals will be supported and policymakers will receive unbiased information under her leadership.”

“I have done what the Framers envisioned for senators to do: use the consultative process to seek firm commitments, in this case commitments that will advance our national security, which is my top priority as a former Marine Corps intelligence officer. Having now secured these commitments, I will support Tulsi’s nomination and look forward to working with her to protect our national security,” he added. 

Young didn’t say how he planned to vote. (Alex Wong)

In a since-deleted post on X the weekend prior, Trump-aligned billionaire Elon Musk slammed Young as a “deep state puppet” in regard to his uncertainty about Gabbard. 

But the two seemed to patch things up on a phone call soon after.

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Musk criticized the senator for his hesitance.  (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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A spokesperson for Young told Fox News Digital in a statement, “Senator Young and Mr. Musk had a great conversation on a number of subjects and policy areas where they have a shared interest, like DOGE.”

Musk also shared on X over the weekend, “Just had an excellent conversation with [Young]. I stand corrected. Senator Young will be a great ally in restoring power to the people from the vast, unelected bureaucracy.”