Tulsi Gabbard will resign from her position as the US director of national intelligence in the Trump administration, citing her husband’s recent bone cancer diagnosis. “His strength and love have sustained me through every challenge,” she wrote in her resignation letter obtained by CBS News, the BBC’s US partner. “I cannot in good conscience ask him to face this fight alone while I continue in this demanding and time-consuming position.”
President Donald Trump said in a social media post that Gabbard “has done an incredible job, and we will miss her”.
Her resignation is effective 30 June. Aaron Lukas, the principal deputy director, will step in as acting director, Trump said.
Gabbard, a loyal supporter of Trump during his 2024 presidential campaign, was confirmed as one of the most powerful figures in US intelligence-gathering weeks after he returned to the White House in 2025. But this year, she has largely been out of public view as the US has taken military action against Iran, put pressure on Cuba, and notably removed Venezuela’s president.
Gabbard is the latest Cabinet member to leave the Trump administration after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi both left the administration earlier this year.
She becomes the fourth cabinet member to leave; Lori Chavez-DeRemer left her position as labor secretary in April.
In her resignation letter, Gabbard said her husband, Abraham, “faces major challenges in the coming weeks and months.”
Trump posted on social media that Gabbard “rightfully, wants to be with him, bringing him back to good health as they currently fight a tough battle together. I have no doubt he will soon be better than ever.”
She has positioned herself during her political career as an anti-interventionalist against foreign wars, creating tension between her as head of national intelligence and Trump at a time when the US is at war. After the US struck Iran, she avoided endorsing the decision, careful evading questions during a congressional hearing in March about whether the administration knew of the conflict’s potential fallout.
She faced scrutiny during questioning over what Democrats perceived as discrepancies between the White House and intelligence community claims about Iran’s nuclear enrichment capabilities.
Under her leadership, the intelligence community has reduced in size, and has been marked by controversy, including allegations she concealed intelligence from Congress and politicized the office.
An Army National Guard veteran, Gabbard was previously a Democratic congresswoman representing Hawaii.
She ran an unsuccessful bid for president in 2020, positioning herself on an anti-interventionalist foreign policy platform.
Two years later, she left the Democratic party and later endorsed Trump in 2024. She campaigned with Trump and was a member of his transition team after the election.
Trump nominated her to be director of national intelligence shortly after he won the election. As head of the intelligence community, Gabbard coordinates among multiple intelligence agencies and advises the president.
By BBC News
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