Tulsi Gabbard

Tulsi Gabbard (/ˈtʌlsi ˈɡæbərd/; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving since 2025 as the 8th director of national intelligence (DNI). She has held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve since 2021, and previously served as U.S. representative for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district from 2013 to 2021. A former Democrat, she joined the Republican Party in 2024. Gabbard was the youngest state legislator in Hawaii from 2002 to 2004. Gabbard launched her 2020 presidential campaign running on an anti-interventionist and populist platform but dropped out and endorsed Joe Biden in March 2020. Previously, she also served as vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2013 to 2016 but resigned to endorse Bernie Sanders for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. After her departure from Congress in 2021, Gabbard took stances on issues such as abortion, foreign policy, border security and transgender rights that differed significantly from her former Democrat colleagues. She left the Democratic Party in 2022. In 2024, Gabbard endorsed Donald Trump for the presidential election and joined the Republican Party later that year. After Trump nominated Gabbard for DNI, her past statements on Syria and the Russian invasion of Ukraine drew scrutiny and concern. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsi_Gabbard