Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) expressed condolences Friday to Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned from her position as President Donald Trump's director of national intelligence to focus on her husband, who is battling bone cancer — but he also called her out for endorsing the president's decisions.
Schiff's Condolences and Criticism
"My thoughts go out to Tulsi Gabbard and her family, as her husband battles this serious health problem," the California Democrat wrote Friday on X. "I hope and pray that he makes a speedy and full recovery."
Gabbard stated she will be resigning next month, writing on X that her husband, Abraham, was recently diagnosed with "an extremely rare form of bone cancer." Trump confirmed this in a post on Truth Social.
Schiff then went on the attack, targeting Trump and the policies that had the support of the outgoing national intelligence director.
"While the circumstances around her departure are deserving of our sympathy, let's be clear: Tulsi Gabbard's only positive contribution to our national security is her resignation," he said. "She politicized intelligence: She dismantled critical agencies keeping Americans safe."
Schiff continued, "She weaponized the IC to pursue baseless election fraud claims ... We must ensure that her tenure — marked by a devotion to the person of the president and not to the security of the country — represents a terrible exception at DNI and not the new normal."
Republican Backlash
Many Republicans rebuked Schiff for his criticism of Gabbard. White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson called Schiff's comments "Disgusting." Trump's U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, went even further, writing on X, "I've always realized Adam 'full of' Schiff had NO class & he proved to be a serial liar who fabricated hateful charges against @realDonaldTrump but his comments about @TulsiGabbard are a new low for someone I didn't think could sink any lower. He just did."
Gabbard's Background and Resignation
Gabbard, seen here testifying during a senate intelligence hearing in March, presented as an anti-war progressive before joining the Trump administration. She called former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton the "queen of warmongers" and frequently decried unnecessary U.S. wars.
During her tenure under Trump, she accused former President Barack Obama of orchestrating a "yearlong coup and treasonous conspiracy" to undermine the president. Trump said on his Truth Social platform that Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas will become the acting director. Lukas, a former CIA officer, is an analyst who served on the National Security Council during Trump's first term.
