Summary

Republican senators are privately pushing to review Tulsi Gabbard’s FBI file amid concerns about her alignment with Russian interests following her nomination as Trump’s director of national intelligence.

Gabbard’s past support for Edward Snowden, who leaked U.S. state secrets, has drawn particular scrutiny, as has her history of echoing Russian talking points on Ukraine and Syria.

While GOP senators are publicly deferring to Trump’s pick, some, including Sens. Mike Rounds and Susan Collins, emphasize the importance of full background checks and hearings to address potential security risks.

  • ristoril_zip@lemmy.zip
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    5 hours ago

    after Gaetz dropped out i told a friend of mine that if I could have only one other person kept from the new administration, it would be Gabbard.

    She is absolutely compromised, and it must be very, very deep. Whatever she afraid of, it must be massive.

    Either that or she’s actually turned and loves (Soviet) Russia.

    • GladiusB@lemmy.world
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      11 hours ago

      Don’t try and make sense of the crazy lunatic. You will just drive yourself crazy.

  • Viking_Hippie@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Gabbard’s past support for Edward Snowden

    Yeah, Republicans WOULD be upset about her only correct stance, even if it’s a past one 🤦

    • agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works
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      14 hours ago

      Whether or not you agree with notorious intelligence leaks, and I’m not saying I don’t, it’s not a great look for the Director of National Intelligence to support the leaking of sensitive intelligence documents.

      • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world
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        6 hours ago

        Well, the sensitive intelligence documents showed that the NSA was interpreting the law in a way that goes way beyond what Congress allowed.

        Having someone at the top that agrees that their department has limits regarding the US constitution is prepared to enforce those limits does NOT sound like a bad thing.

        • agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works
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          5 hours ago

          Sure, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was a breach of security.

          It’s like applying for bank security after praising Pretty Boy Floyd.

          • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world
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            5 hours ago

            it was a breach of security.

            Agreed, and that’s on the NSA and it’s processes that need fixing. Not Snowden.

            Also, in this case it’s like praising Pretty Boy Floyd for reporting to it’s customers that a bank was lying about how much gold it had in its vaults.

    • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      face it man, Snowden is a Russian asset at this point.

      he didn’t start out that way be given the options of tea, window, or sabotage he chose sabotage.

        • Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world
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          6 hours ago

          What would you have done differently

          Traveled under a fake ID. People do it in films and TV all the time. Not sure how practical that is in reality though.

          • LavenderDay3544@lemmy.world
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            3 hours ago

            Real life is not like TV. High quality counterfeit papers that stand up to scrutiny are very hard to get. The only way to get ones that are guaranteed to work is by having someone at the state department who can issue them or buying them from someone with those kind of connections. And the odds are good that the fads have honeypots set up to catch people trying to get fake documents.

        • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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          10 hours ago

          I wouldn’t have done anything differently.

          Just pointing it out because so many have a fetish to make him a hero even after he’s helped the guy who wants to destroy our nation.

        • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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          20 hours ago

          Quietly quit because his whistle was never going to stop that kind of surveillance. If you held a gun to my head and said I had to leak then NYTimes and WaPo would get the relevant slide deck and I’d stand my day in court knowing I’d probably have my sentence commuted after several years.

          He chose the literal worst option.

        • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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          1 day ago

          no. Assange cares only for Assange.

          Snowden cared about Americans once, but was abandoned by his nation to a corrupt government.

          he’s an unwilling Russian asset now, think of it like indentured servitude for his life.

          • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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            1 day ago

            Are you able to point to actions that Snowden has taken to negatively impact the interests of the US people or to materially aid Russia?

            • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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              10 hours ago

              no, and I don’t have to.

              It is my opinion after all.

              we’re allowed to share those on here still, right?

              edit: did I hurt all the snowbunnie feewings?

              Boohoo

              • Yawweee877h444@lemmy.world
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                10 hours ago

                You weren’t stating it as opinion, you were stating it as if it’s objective fact.

                Very big difference in wording.

                • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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                  10 hours ago

                  I think you might be confused. it’s not your fault.

                  unless someone provides evidence, it should always be considered an opinion. that’s how the world used to work.

                  now everyone just reads all comments as facts instead of using their cognitive ability to read and comprehend. it’s not your fault that the Internet made your brain lazy.

              • aeshna_cyanea@lemm.ee
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                12 hours ago

                The question of whether someone works for a government is not really a matter of opinion

                • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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                  2 hours ago

                  I’ll give you a legitimate response since I’ve got the time while taking the Browns to the Super Bowl.

                  opinions are varied and limitless as the ideas that feed them. One can have opinions on opinions!

                  so, when the neurons in your brain were firing on all cylinders to come up with your question, did you actually think that one couldn’t have an opinion on something as menial and useless as, “whether someone works for a government”?

                  I have many opinions, some are rather good, others not so much.

                  for example, my opinion of you isn’t very good.

              • Exatron@lemmy.world
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                21 hours ago

                It’s not unreasonable to ask someone to elaborate or justify their opinion, kiddo.

  • halcyoncmdr@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    The Senate receiving every bit of intelligence on a nominee from every government organization should be a requirement. If there’s a national security issue with disclosure to the general assembly, that information should still go to the committees/Senators that have those clearances, like the Intelligence Committee.

    • incogtino@lemmy.zip
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      2 days ago

      “Although FBI file reviews are standard for presidential cabinet candidates…”

      I don’t disagree with you, but this is a non-story. The committee asks for and receives this information as a matter of course

      • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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        20 hours ago

        Trump wanted the Senate to just take a recess so he could make all his appointments without oversight.

        That was never going to happen unless he allowed The Heritage Foundation to choose the cabinet and the Federalist Society to choose the judges. But Gaetz, Hegseth, and Gabbard made the request laughable.

        • WhatYouNeed@lemmy.world
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          1 day ago

          The fucker won’t sign it either. It will go to inauguration and he will proclaim its not needed by executive decision.

              • Maggoty@lemmy.world
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                18 hours ago

                Impeachment. They can impeach all of his appointments, and ultimately him. If he continues to ignore them then we’ll get to see him forcibly removed from office.

                If everyone ignores Congress then we have a Constitutional Crisis that will likely result in the end of American Democracy. In the Constitution the President has the least amount of authority.

  • cheers_queers@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    i love that he won’t even be in office for a couple more months and they’re already eating each other

      • takeda@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        My thoughts too. I prefer non functional over fascist functional.

        Though it looks like people around him this time are expecting to be able to manipulate him and to have a real power.

        Another concern is that he likely replace Thomas and Alito with younger ones, basically cementing this corrupted makeup.

        • phdepressed@sh.itjust.works
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          2 days ago

          I could see Alito retiring for party over country but Thomas is too self-serving, he’d have to die to give up the free money position.

        • phar
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          1 day ago

          What’s to stop them from packing scotus with a ton of con judges

      • Xanthobilly@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        They had all three branches for two years under Trump starting in 2016 and only got the tax cuts passed, and otherwise dicked around.

        • spongebue@lemmy.world
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          1 day ago

          ACA repeal was only after a surprise vote by John McCain. Before that it was assumed to go through. I’m not so sure it won’t be replaced this Congress with “concepts of a plan”

  • TransplantedSconie@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    Marco Rubio is on the Intelligence Committee, yeah?

    Dude wants to be Sect. Of State so damn bad he’s throwing all those Alphabets directly under a speeding Lada.

  • thefartographer@lemm.ee
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    2 days ago

    Quit being concerned quietly in private and freak the fuck out loudly like the rest of us, you fuckheads! Why do you keep choosing the most shit-filled route and then saying that the amount of shit you have to wade through gives you pause.