Kim Petersen
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On Being Trump’s Director of National Intelligence
Part 1 of 2
by Kim Petersen
On 17 June, a member of the media asked Trump: “Tulsi Gabbard testified in March that the intelligence community said that Iran wasn’t building a nuclear weapon.”
Trump brusquely responded, “I don’t care what she said. I think they are very close to having one.”
This is just another instance of the rudeness, arrogance, and imbecility of Trump. First, Trump chose Gabbard to be his director of national intelligence.
Second, the assessment of having an Iran nuclear weapon program or not is not Gabbard’s assessment. It is, as she testified, on the “Annual Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community”: “the collective assessment of the 18 U.S. intelligence elements making up the U.S. Intelligence Community and draws on intelligence collection, information available to the IC from open-source and the private sector, and the expertise of our analysts.”
During the 25 March threat assessment, Gabbard testified:
The IC continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.
Third, since Gabbard, the messenger, was belittled by Trump as “wrong,” then the U.S. Intelligence Community must likewise be held by Trump to be wrong. People are then left with Trump’s uncertainty, revealed by his “I think…,” as to Iran working on developing nuclear weapons. That begs the question of whether Americans want to see their sons and daughters go to war based on what Trump thinks over the assessment of 18 intelligence agencies?
Nonetheless, Gabbard has tried to regain Trump’s good graces by, like Trump, discrediting the media. She posted on X.com:
However, if one watches the linked source above, it corroborates that the media, in this case, accurately reflected the intelligence community’s assessment as related by Gabbard. Thus, Gabbard’s X post makes her come across as sycophantic. Not a good look for a politician or non-politician.
If the ins and outs of politics is Gabbard’s bag — and it certainly seems to be — then she is in a tough spot. She already was forced, more-or-less, to leave the Democratic Party. And besides the Republican Party, there is no other major party to join in the United States.
Part 2 of 2
On 20 June 2025, Galloway spoke about his dream team for the next presidential race: “Tulsi Gabbard, Tucker Carlson, president and vice president of the United States of America.”
He advised Gabbard to “resign if Trump joins the war and should make plain that she intends to run for president.” She hasn’t.
By Gabbard’s logic, she could be criticized as an apologist and supporter of Zionist Israeli terrorists.
Gabbard also opines, “This is not a ‘resistance’ movement. Hamas is a jihadist terrorist group funded by Iran, whose goal is the destruction of Israel.” (The Tulsi Gabbard Show, Ep. 45)
She accuses Hamas of using human shields, but she does not criticize Israel using Palestinian children as human shields. Even the Zionist friendly BBC reports this.(“Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, knowing Israel will retaliate. They provoke war, then exploit the suffering for propaganda.” Cited by Deepseek as “Tulsi Gabbard on Israel-Palestine Conflict,” CNN, 7 May 2019.)
Gabbard criticizes the ICERD Genocide Case (2024): “South Africa’s case at the ICJ is a propaganda stunt. Hamas is the real war criminal here.” (Twitter/X)
Gabbard is regressivist on Iran
Gabbard has called for regime change in Iran: “The Iranian people deserve freedom from this oppressive, theocratic dictatorship.” (Fox News, 2023)
She was also against Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear deal: “The JCPOA gave Iran billions while allowing them to keep terror networks intact.” (CNN, 2019)
Of course, all the talk about Iran and its purported nuclear weapons program has now had a wrench thrown into the works as the US launched an illegal and unannounced war on Iran. Gabbard fell into line behind Trump on this illegal attack (contrary to the UN Charter and without Congressional approval). The repercussions from that US attack will become clearer as time passes.
Galloway’s Lesser Evilism
Back to Galloway. Is it really, as Galloway claims about a future Tulsi Gabbard presidential candidacy: “As good as it is going to get”? Have pity on the world, if that is true.
Can Gabbard represent the conscience of a nation? Surely there are better progressivist choices.
Right away a courageous woman of integrity such as Medea Benjamin comes to mind.
Given the public rebukes of her by Donald Trump, speculation had emerged of her doing just that: resigning. However, Gabbard has instead attempted to win her way back into Trump’s good book.
Two years ago, George Galloway, who served five-terms as a UK MP, and now hosts the popular Mother of all Talk Shows came across as a Gabbard fanboy,
I have come to the view that the best possible president for the United States in 2024 is Tulsi Gabbard. I think she’s got the looks. I think she’s got style. I think she’s got the eloquence. And most of her politics, but by no means all, are as good as you’re going to get from anyone with a chance of winning the presidency of the United states. So there’s quite a few hedges and qualifications in there, but I have come to the view that Tulsi Gabbard for president is our best bet.
Horrors that looks, sartorial, and eloquence should be enounced as foremost considerations — or even being considerations at all — for a political leader. A consideration not mentioned by Galloway was intelligence.
When one scrutinizes Gabbard on her record, support for her would again be an appeal to lesser evilism. She may, however, be one of the best among so many regressivist politicians.
Gabbard, in particular, comes to the fore on militarism and foreign affairs. What is part of her record here?
Gabbard's regressivism on Palestine and Israel
Gabbard seems not to realize that Palestine is a state, unrecognized as such by the United States, that is under siege, occupation, theft of resources, and an ongoing genocide (sped up greatly since 7 October 2023). Moreover, Gabbard does not call what Israel has been carrying out since 7 October a genocide.
She focuses her ire on Hamas’s “evil” actions. In a 10 October 2023 interview on Fox News Tonight (hosted by Brian Kilmeade filling in for Tucker Carlson), Gabbard stated: “Israel has not only the right but the responsibility to defend itself against these terrorists who slaughtered innocent civilians.”
On 10 October 2023, Gabbard posted on X: “Hamas is responsible for this war. They could end it now by surrendering, releasing hostages, and laying down their arms.” In other words, Gabbard denies Palestinians the inalienable right to resist occupation, an occupation that is rooted in killing, racism, humiliation, and brutality.
Gabbard also rejected calls for a ceasefire, implying that she backs the continued Israeli military operations in Gaza. (The Tulsi Gabbard Show, Ep. 45)
While Gabbard has never referred to Israel’s genocidal actions, she does make this accusation against Hamas. In an X post on 10 October 2023, she stated: “Hamas is a genocidal terrorist group. They must be defeated.”
Gabbard took aim at those Democrats who are,
accusing Israel of committing a genocide. It it is the height of hypocrisy because they’re apologists and supporters of these Islamist Hamas terrorists who are calling for a genocide the extermination of all Jews not just in Israel but around the world and we’re seeing this being carried out by these violent mobs and threats and other things that are happening against Jewish people literally uh around the world.
By Gabbard’s logic, she could be criticized as an apologist and supporter of Zionist Israeli terrorists.
Gabbard also opines, “This is not a ‘resistance’ movement. Hamas is a jihadist terrorist group funded by Iran, whose goal is the destruction of Israel.” (The Tulsi Gabbard Show, Ep. 45)
She accuses Hamas of using human shields, but she does not criticize Israel using Palestinian children as human shields. Even the Zionist friendly BBC reports this.(“Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, knowing Israel will retaliate. They provoke war, then exploit the suffering for propaganda.” Cited by Deepseek as “Tulsi Gabbard on Israel-Palestine Conflict,” CNN, 7 May 2019.)
Gabbard criticizes the ICERD Genocide Case (2024): “South Africa’s case at the ICJ is a propaganda stunt. Hamas is the real war criminal here.” (Twitter/X)
Gabbard is regressivist on Iran
Gabbard has called for regime change in Iran: “The Iranian people deserve freedom from this oppressive, theocratic dictatorship.” (Fox News, 2023)
She was also against Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear deal: “The JCPOA gave Iran billions while allowing them to keep terror networks intact.” (CNN, 2019)
Of course, all the talk about Iran and its purported nuclear weapons program has now had a wrench thrown into the works as the US launched an illegal and unannounced war on Iran. Gabbard fell into line behind Trump on this illegal attack (contrary to the UN Charter and without Congressional approval). The repercussions from that US attack will become clearer as time passes.
Galloway’s Lesser Evilism
Back to Galloway. Is it really, as Galloway claims, about a future Tulsi Gabbard presidential candidacy: “As good as it is going to get”? Have pity on the world, if that is true.
Can Gabbard represent the conscience of a nation? Surely there are better progressivist choices.
Medea Benjamin: Invariaby on the right side of history.
Right away a courageous woman of integrity such as Medea Benjamin comes to mind.
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ALL CAPTIONS AND PULL QUOTES BY THE EDITORS NOT THE AUTHORS
1 comment
I wrote the message to Tulsi Gabbard below* just before she did her verbal about face or 180 degree turn (AKA Baerbock 360 degree turn).
While at first glance this appeared to be a spineless reversal of her previous position and principles, a quisling move to preserve her career and retirement prospects, one must also wonder if she was actually blackmailed or threatened, whether the balaclava clad Deep State goon squad entered her home at 3am one morning and threatened to kill her and all her extended family twice removed if she did not support the agenda of the Blob.
That would be 100% consistent with past tactics of the Deep State. Killing innocents en mass is nothing to them, it is as natural as breathing, it is an integral part of their playbook repeated time and time again.
Alex Krainer postulated this as the reason “no new wars” Trump has now become “bomb Iran” Trump.
Everyone needs to see this essential, insightful interview:
https://youtu.be/zhLeCqB_2dM
*My message to Tulsi Gabbard:
Trump said it blatantly: he does not care about the unanimous judgements of multiple US intelligence agencies, the summary of which you presented to him.
Colonel Gabbard, I used to think highly of your courageous anti-war stands based on your honest examination of facts and evidence.
Were they just empty rhetoric?
If you truly believe the words of your recent warning to the world that elites in the US are pushing for nuclear war,
https://youtu.be/7TKagrJC9B4
then you must act to STOP THIS NOW. It may be possible that you are the only one in the world who can do this.
There are NO judicial or constitutional avenues available to stop such madness today, all peaceful checks and balances have been systematically dismantled and sabotaged over the years by the puppet masters controlling Washington.
There is NO democracy in the USA, only the despicable diversion of trillions of dollars that should be used for US public healthcare and housing and infrastructure going instead to military boondoggles and the overseas genocide of brown people with skin hue the same as yours.
You have deep and wide contacts in the US military. You know who can be trusted and who are just self serving Generals on the Raytheon payroll.
You need to organise a military coup to extirpate the Neoconartists, the Chickenshit Armchair Warmongering Psychopaths, the beltway swamp creatures, the corporatists and their financiers who are pushing us into Armageddon.
The personal risk to you for doing this is extremely high. But the risk of you not doing this, the risk of you and all your family and all of humanity dying is far far higher and is utterly unacceptable.
Note that you have NO OBLIGATION to be loyal to a President or an Establishment that perpetrates ILLEGAL warfare, in fact it is YOUR CONSTITUTIONAL DUTY TO DEFY illegal orders.
It is obvious to everyone in the world that war with Iran, which poses NO THREAT to the USA, is ILLEGAL, even more obviously than the 2003 US invasion of Iraq based on LIES.
Psychopathic lunatics may slander you as a traitor to the USA, but you cannot be a traitor for foiling the criminal agenda of psychopaths who commit mass murder, and for saving US lives.
You will in fact be recognised as the greatest US patriot in history, by overthrowing those psychopaths, saving the world from nuclear extinction and redirecting all US finances to the rebuilding of the USA.
Truly democratic elections can be held after that, but only after extensive reforms, in particular banning the toxic funding of candidates by private and/or foreign interests, especially AIPAC.