Gabbard Path Through Intel Committee Narrows Ahead of Key Hearing
As Rep. Tulsi Gabbard prepares to face the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday, her path to the committee has grown increasingly narrow. The Hawaii Democrat is set to appear before the committee to discuss her controversial meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which has sparked widespread criticism from lawmakers and experts.
Gabbard, who is also a 2020 presidential candidate, has been accused of downplaying the Syrian government’s human rights abuses and has faced intense scrutiny for her meeting with Assad in May. The meeting was reportedly arranged by Gabbard’s husband, Abdul El-Sayed, a Palestinian-American doctor who has ties to the Syrian government.
In the lead-up to the hearing, several key committee members have publicly expressed skepticism about Gabbard’s qualifications to serve on the committee. Rep. Eliot Engel, the committee’s chairman, has accused Gabbard of being “compromised” by her meeting with Assad and has suggested that she may have provided classified information to the Syrian government.
Other committee members, including Rep. Ted Lieu, have also raised concerns about Gabbard’s fitness to serve on the committee, citing her lack of experience and her perceived lack of understanding of national security issues.
Gabbard’s allies, however, have rallied around her, arguing that she is being unfairly targeted by the committee and that her meeting with Assad was a legitimate attempt to engage with a key player in the Syrian conflict.
The hearing is expected to be a tense and contentious affair, with many lawmakers and experts expected to testify about Gabbard’s meeting with Assad and her qualifications to serve on the committee.
