Gabbard resigns as US intelligence chief citing family health crisis
President Donald Trump confirms Tulsi Gabbard’s exit effective 30 June, appointing Aaron Lukas as acting director following reports of her sidelining in key foreign policy decisions
Tulsi Gabbard has resigned from her position as Director of National Intelligence in President Donald Trump’s administration, effective 30 June 2026. In a resignation letter posted to her X account, Gabbard cited her husband’s recent diagnosis with a rare form of bone cancer as the primary reason for her departure from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
President Trump confirmed the resignation via his Truth Social account, stating that Gabbard would leave the administration on the specified date. He praised her performance, noting that she had “done an incredible job” and that the administration would miss her. Trump also announced that Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas would assume the role in an acting capacity.
Gabbard, who served in the US Congress as a Democrat from 2013 to 2021, had previously been a vocal critic of US interventionism before endorsing Trump in 2020. A former member of the Hawaii National Guard deployed during the US invasion of Iraq, her political stance was heavily influenced by her opposition to military adventurism abroad. She had previously criticised the Biden administration for facing “multiple wars on multiple fronts” and being closer to nuclear war than ever before.
Her tenure has been characterised by friction between her historical anti-interventionist views and the Trump administration’s recent military actions. Reports indicate that Gabbard was sidelined when the administration decided to launch a military abduction of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Her past opposition to military action against Venezuela and Iran stood in direct contradiction to the current administration’s policies in those regions.
Following initial silence regarding Iran, Gabbard later defended the administration’s decision to launch a current war alongside Israel. She maintained that the president, rather than the intelligence community, is responsible for determining what constitutes an imminent threat. The resignation comes amid broader geopolitical tensions, including a recent summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
