Megyn Kelly, in her opening monologue on the episode that later featured John Kiriakou, reported that Donald Trump was privately polling advisers about replacing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and offered her own opinion that he shouldn’t.[1]
A family friendship going back decades
John Kiriakou says he has known Tulsi Gabbard since she was 12 years old and was close friends with her parents. Her father led the 1990s campaign to protect traditional marriage in Hawaii — a position that made him widely hated — while Kiriakou, then chairman of the college Republicans, worked closely with him.[2]
”An inspired choice”
Kiriakou calls Gabbard’s appointment as Director of National Intelligence “an inspired choice,” saying he likes and trusts her and knows people who work for her who vouch for her honesty.[3][4] He nonetheless disagrees with her decision to join the Republican Party, arguing she could have remained an independent.[5] John Kiriakou explains that as Director of National Intelligence, Gabbard nominally oversees all 18 U.S. intelligence agencies and holds “everything of everything,” serving at the pleasure of the president with no fixed term. But he notes the DNI was, until recently, really in charge only of budgets — and not even fully those, since most agencies sit inside the Pentagon or State Department.[6][7][8]
Section 702
Kiriakou says Gabbard appeared to give up her prior opposition to Section 702 surveillance in order to secure her Senate confirmation, one of several instances he cites of the security state pressuring incoming officials to drop reform positions.[9]
Leak accusations
Kiriakou notes Gabbard has, like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, been accused of leak-related problems involving war-plan information.[10]