Dems accused of ‘stonewalling’ Tulsi Gabbard’s confirmation after GOP calls for speedy hearing

Trump’s transition team accuses Senate Democrats of “stonewalling” Tulsi Gabbard’s confirmation as Director of National Intelligence (DNI).

A hearing has not yet been set for President-elect Trump’s DNI pick, despite Republicans pushing for Gabbard’s nomination to be one of the first to be considered due to national security concerns. The potential delay in her hearing was first reported by Axios.

Committee rules dictate that the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence cannot hold a hearing unless all necessary paperwork is received at least a week in advance, Intel Vice Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., told Fox News Digital.

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According to Warner’s office, the committee has not yet received prehearing questions from Gabbard or an ethics disclosure. They also haven’t gotten a copy of her FBI background check.

However, a spokesperson for Gabbard and Trump’s transition team pushed back on this. According to the transition, the paperwork due Dec. 18 was submitted, the FBI background check has been completed, and an additional round of paperwork is due Thursday and will be completed by then.

The FBI did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions about whether the background check had been provided to the Intel committee.

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The transition team also noted that Gabbard has a top-secret security clearance from her Army service, meaning her background check was expedited.

The spokesman for Gabbard claimed that Warner instructed Democratic members of the committee not to set up meetings with her until he had done so, and outlined her meeting process. According to them, Warner’s office was emailed on November 27, but did not respond until December 29.

“After the terrorist attacks on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, it is sad to see Senator Warner and the Democrats playing politics with the safety of Americans and our national security by blocking the nomination of Lt. Col. Gabbard, who is willing to meet with every member. who will meet with her, while this process continues,” said Interim Speaker Alexa Henning.

“It is critical that the Senate quickly confirm President-elect Trump’s national security nominees, which has previously been a bipartisan effort. We are working closely with Chairman (Tom) Cotton and look forward to Lt. Col. Gabbard’s hearing before Inauguration Day.”

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The only Democrat to circumvent that supposed directive was Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., the transition team said. The two met last month at the Capitol.

Gabbard’s team added that Sens. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Angus King, I-Maine, only responded after Warner’s team finally confirmed their meeting.

Warner’s office declined to issue such a directive to Democratic members. “This is completely untrue. Vice Chairman Warner has urged all senators on the committee to meet with the nominee (as he has), carefully evaluate her experience, record and statements for themselves and reach their own conclusions about whether she has the qualifications and background for this critical role,” spokeswoman Rachel Cohen told Fox News Digital in a statement.

Intel’s vice chairman met personally with Gabbard on Tuesday. “I had a session with Ms. Gabbard, I went in with a lot of questions. I still have a lot of questions,” Warner said afterward.

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“This is an extraordinarily serious job that requires maintaining the independence of the intelligence community. It also means maintaining cooperation among our allies. We’ve gotten a lot of our intelligence from our allies on a sharing basis, and if they — that information is not kept secure , it’s a big concern, so I have, you know, we have a number of questions for her. This is the beginning of a process.

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A spokesman for the new Intel chairman, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., told Fox News Digital in a statement, “Chairman Cotton intends to hold these hearings before Inauguration Day. The Intelligence Committee, the nominees and the transition are diligently working toward that goal.”

A source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital that the committee has not yet asked Gabbard for her written responses to the advance policy questions, stressing that she cannot respond to anything that has not yet been received.