John Brennan: Tulsi Gabbard ‘Doesn’t Have the Type of Perspective’ Needed To Be Director of National Intelligence

Wallace: “Director Brennan, your thoughts about Tulsi Gabbard?”

BRENNAN: “Well, Nicolle, I think you and Tom Nichols have done a great job just underscoring all the concerns that people have about this appointment. And clearly, Tulsi Gabbard has taken actions and made statements over the past several years that really raised serious questions about her common sense, her judgment, as well as her political sympathies. Cozying up to Putin, as well as meeting with Bashar al-Assad, I think really does show that she doesn’t have the type of perspective that is needed for somebody who’s going to head up these 18 intelligence agencies. And as Tom Nichols said, she doesn’t have any qualifications. The director of national intelligence, that’s a really serious position, and a very complex and complicated one that requires somebody who actually has an understanding of the intelligence community. It’s like an orchestra conductor of all the different agencies and departments that are involved in the intelligence process, and I don’t think she understands even the instruments that are involved in this orchestra, nor has she had any experience at the strategic level of running and leading a large complex organization. And the director of national intelligence is, according to legislation, the President’s principal intelligence adviser, the person who is responsible for making sure that the President’s Daily Brief is put together in a very sound and forthright manner, the person who puts together the budget and the priorities of the intelligence community. So, I know that this appointment is sending shockwaves here in the United States, but also around the globe in terms of, is this really somebody who Donald Trump is going to entrust with the care and the leadership of the intelligence community? An unserious pick for a serious position.”