Tulsi Gabbard clears Senate committee in bid to lead US intelligence community

Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination for director of national intelligence advanced out of the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday, teeing her up for a final vote later this month.The panel met in secret, but lawmakers who emerged indicated that the vote to report Gabbard’s nomination favorably had fallen along party lines, with nine Republicans supporting the ex-Democratic congresswoman and eight Democrats opposing.Gabbard, 43, can only afford to lose three GOP votes in the full Senate before her nomination fails.Some Republicans and national security hawks have raised alarms about the Hawaiian’s past skepticism of the intelligence community — most notably its reporting that Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad carried out dozens of chemical weapons attacks against his own people during the decade-long civil war in the Middle Eastern country.During the open portion of Gabbard’s confirmation hearing last week, a handful of Republicans grilled her over her earlier stances and signaled they had deep reservations about her nomination.Sen.Todd Young (R-Ind.) told the nominee at one point that “it would befit you and be helpful for the way you’re perceived by members of the Intelligence Committee” to acknowledge that National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden harmed national security.Gabbard, a past supporter of Snowden, refused to call the ex-contractor a “traitor,” but did say she would not push for a pardon and acknowledged he had broken the law by sharing details of the NSA’s warrantless surveillance program.Young announced Tuesday that he would back Gabbard after revealing that she gave him assurances “that our intelligence professionals will be supported and policymakers will receive unbiased information under her leadership.”Sen.

Susan Collins (R-Maine), another potential swing vote, also came out in favor of Gabbard, praising her plans to slim down the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.Sen.James Lanford (R-Okla.), who also appeare...