Tulsi Gabbard is one step closer to becoming President Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence, turning what was expected to be one of the president’s most contentious nominations into an easy Republican win.
Senators voted along party lines Monday to invoke cloture on Gabbard’s nomination, setting up a final vote as early as Wednesday.
Much of the initial shakiness on Gabbard’s nomination was squashed by those in Trumpworld, including Vice President JD Vance, who reached out to senators on Gabbard’s behalf.
Sens. Susan Collins and Todd Young — members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which voted on party lines last week to advance Gabbard’s nomination — told reporters last week that they talked with Vance after they expressed reservations about Gabbard’s nomination. Former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema also spoke with both senators to vouch for Gabbard.
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As of Monday, Sen. John Curtis was the lone Republican whose vote was uncertain. He said after Gabbard’s Intelligence Committee hearing that he had concerns about her nomination, but ultimately joined his Republican colleagues in supporting Gabbard.
With the initial holdouts falling in line, Democratic opposition wasn’t enough to truly stall Gabbard, despite earlier worries from Trump allies (and hopes from Democrats) that she could be the first Trump nominee to face significant obstacles after receiving backlash for several parts of her history, including expressing sympathy for Edward Snowden and a visit to Syria.
Instead, Gabbard’s nomination is slated to become another where Democrats’ attempts at resistance have fallen flat.
It’s a sequence of events that has played out for almost every nominee so far.
Despite Democratic pushback against Pete Hegseth ahead of his confirmation vote for defense secretary, last-minute boosts from Trump allies and MAGA activists helped him narrowly secure the position — even as three Republican senators joined their Democratic colleagues in voting against Hegseth, marking the only nomination so far that’s seen any Republican opposition. And last week, Republicans voted to confirm Russell Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget even after Democrats delayed the vote by holding the Senate floor overnight.
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Shifra Dayak is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.
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