Good morning. We're covering two of Trump's most controversial nominees — as well as Elon Musk, the Middle East and the Westminster Dog Show.
Two loyalistsToday, the Senate is poised to confirm Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. And tomorrow, it is likely to advance Kash Patel's nomination to run the F.B.I. These are two of President Trump's most controversial nominees. What do they have in common? They are both exceedingly loyal to the president. They both believe partisanship has poisoned the civil service. And they both promise to promote unconventional views on Trump's behalf. Gabbard left the Democratic Party in 2022 and aligned herself with Trump. She endorsed his preferred candidates for that year's midterms and became a Trump-friendly regular on Fox News. Patel wrote a memoir in 2023, "Government Gangsters," about the supposed "deep state" arrayed against Trump and three books for children that cast Trump as a king. Trump's critics say Gabbard and Patel are sycophants, unqualified for these jobs. Trump's supporters say their views have been misconstrued. Today's newsletter explains the two nominees' backgrounds, the controversies surrounding them and what they could do in power.
Tulsi GabbardHer background: Gabbard has been in the Army for nearly 22 years. She served two tours in the Middle East and one in Africa. From 2013 to 2021, she was a Democratic member of the House, representing a district in Hawaii. She's still in the Army Reserve. The controversy: Gabbard's critics say that she's friendly with America's adversaries, particularly Russia. She blamed the United States for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, suggesting that NATO's expansionism had antagonized Vladimir Putin. She met with Bashar al-Assad of Syria in 2017 while he was quashing a revolt against his dictatorship. (She later argued he was not an enemy of the United States.) She has supported Edward Snowden, a contractor who illegally leaked classified U.S. intelligence and then fled to Russia. Gabbard says that she is simply skeptical of America's interventionist foreign policy and unchecked surveillance powers. But critics say it is possible to hold those views without consistently standing up for the country's enemies. Gabbard also believes that the intelligence community is corrupt and politically weaponized. She has pointed to genuine scandals, such as the F.B.I.'s use of surveillance powers to spy on a Trump campaign adviser in 2016. But she also claimed, without evidence, that the intelligence community undermined reports about Hunter Biden's laptop to help Joe Biden win in 2020. What she could do: Gabbard says she wants to make intelligence agencies more transparent, shut down programs that she views as unconstitutional and allow more dissenters to express their disagreements with leaders. She could also use her position to try to hamper interventionist policies abroad and intelligence operations against Russia. What's next: The Senate will vote on Gabbard's nomination today. If confirmed, she will oversee U.S. spy agencies.
Kash PatelHis background: Patel was a federal prosecutor for three years. During Trump's first term, he was the defense secretary's chief of staff. The controversy: Patel has espoused conspiracy theories in support of the president. He has defended QAnon, a group that falsely claims that Trump is battling a cabal of satanist, child-molesting Democrats and power-hungry bureaucrats. And Patel has said that Biden stole the 2020 election. His book argues for using the powers of the presidency to go after Trump's critics. His memoir included an appendix titled "Members of the Executive Branch Deep State," which names possible targets who have or had government jobs. The Trump administration "will go out and find the conspirators not just in government, but in the media," Patel said in 2023, referring to people who obstructed Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Patel is an unusual choice for F.B.I. director. Presidents typically nominate people who rise through the bureau or other police agencies, vowing to protect the nonpartisan aspect of law enforcement. What he could do: Patel has said that he'll fire "corrupt agents" who worked on Jan. 6 cases. (The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee said yesterday that Patel had directed firings at the bureau, even though the Senate had not yet confirmed him.) Patel could push the F.B.I. to investigate Trump's critics, making their lives difficult even if the investigations don't lead to formal charges. He told a Senate panel that he would ignore politics and follow the law. What's next: The Senate Judiciary Committee will vote on Patel's nomination tomorrow. After that, he will get a full vote in the Senate.
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Monty, a regal giant schnauzer with a dramatic beard, won best in show at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. He defeated a tough crowd of canine competitors that included an extremely silky Shih Tzu named Comet and a rugged German shepherd named Mercedes. Related: Boujee, the top-ranked golden retriever, did not win (as we said in a previous newsletter, it's tough out there for the goldens). More on culture
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