Tulsi Gabbard Resigns as U.S. Director of National Intelligence

Tulsi Gabbard, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence (DNI), has resigned from President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, effective June 30, 2026. The resignation, announced on May 22, follows her husband’s diagnosis with an “extremely rare form of bone cancer,” according to verified reporting. Gabbard’s departure marks the latest in a series of high-profile exits from Trump’s administration, including the secretaries of homeland security, justice, and labor in recent months. A senior official described Gabbard as “out of the loop” on key decisions, including the January 2026 U.S. Military intervention in Venezuela—an operation she had previously opposed. Despite her vocal anti-war stance, Gabbard remained loyal to Trump, even amplifying his conspiracy theories about past elections, including claims of a “treasonous conspiracy” by former President Barack Obama’s administration regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election. Her resignation letter, obtained exclusively by Fox News, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve but emphasized her need to prioritize her husband’s health. Gabbard’s tenure as DNI was defined by her contrarian views on foreign policy, including her opposition to potential military action against Iran—a position at odds with Trump’s increasingly hawkish rhetoric. In 2025, she testified to Congress that Iran was not building a nuclear bomb, directly contradicting Trump’s later public claims used to justify a potential war. Her alignment with Trump’s “America First” faction on domestic issues did little to mitigate her isolation on national security matters, where she was repeatedly sidelined. The resignation underscores the fragility of Trump’s anti-war faction within the MAGA movement. Gabbard’s exit follows a pattern of senior officials departing amid internal divisions over foreign policy, particularly regarding Iran, and Venezuela. While her resignation was framed as a personal decision, reports suggest White House pressure may have played a role, given Trump’s stated desire to replace her earlier this year. Gabbard’s career has been marked by ideological shifts: a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii, she left the party in 2022 to join the Republican ranks, positioning herself as a leading voice against regime-change wars. Yet her influence waned as Trump’s administration embraced a more interventionist stance. Her resignation leaves the intelligence community without a prominent critic of military escalation, further consolidating hardline voices in the Trump administration. No immediate replacement for the DNI position has been announced. —