WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Tulsi Gabbard resigned as President Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence on Friday, saying she needed to step away as her husband battles cancer. She is the fourth Cabinet official to depart during Trump鈥檚 second term.
In her resignation letter, which she posted on social media, Gabbard said she told Trump of her decision to leave office on June 30. She said her husband had recently been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer and 鈥渇aces major challenges in the coming weeks and months.鈥�
鈥淎t this time, I must step away from public service to be by his side and fully support him through this battle,鈥� she wrote in the letter, which was earlier reported by Fox 海角社区app.
Trump, in his own social media post announcing her resignation, said 鈥淭ulsi has done an incredible job, and we will miss her.鈥� He said her principal deputy, Aaron Lukas, will serve as acting director of national intelligence.
During Trump鈥檚 first term, Lukas was as an intelligence aide to the acting director of national intelligence, Ric Grenel, in 2020. A former policy analyst at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, he also served as deputy senior director for Europe and Russia at the National Security Council in the final year of Trump鈥檚 previous administration.
There had been rumblings that Gabbard would split with Trump after the president’s decision to strike Iran, which caused some division within his administration. Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, in March, saying he 鈥渃annot in good conscience鈥� back the war.
Gabbard, a veteran and former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii, built her political name on her opposition to foreign wars. This put her in an awkward position when the U.S. joined Israel in launching attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.
During a congressional hearing in March, her measured comments were notable for their careful non-endorsement of Trump鈥檚 decision to strike Iran. She repeatedly dodged questions about whether the White House had been warned of potential fallout from the conflict, including Iran鈥檚 effective closure of the .
Gabbard said in written remarks to the Senate Intelligence Committee that there had been no effort by Iran to rebuild its nuclear capability after U.S. attacks last year 鈥渙bliterated鈥� its nuclear program. That statement contradicted Trump, who has repeatedly asserted that the war was necessary to head off an imminent threat from the Islamic Republic.
This created several awkward exchanges with lawmakers who asked Gabbard for her opinion on the threat posed by Iran as the nation鈥檚 top intelligence official. She repeatedly said it was Trump鈥檚 decision to strike, not hers.
鈥淚t is not the intelligence community鈥檚 responsibility to determine what is and is not an imminent threat,鈥� she said.
Gabbard鈥檚 departure follows Trump having in late March, in the midst of mounting criticism over her leadership of the department 鈥� including the handling of the administration鈥檚 immigration crackdown and disaster response.
The second Cabinet member to leave was Attorney General Pam Bondi, in response to growing frustration over the Justice Department鈥檚 handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein. And Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigned in April, after being the target of various misconduct investigations.
A surprising choice for the job
A veteran but without any intelligence experience, was a surprising choice to head the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees the nation鈥檚 18 intelligence agencies. She ran for president in 2020 on a progressive platform and her opposition to U.S. involvement in foreign military conflicts.
Citing her military experience, she argued that U.S. wars in the Middle East had destabilized the region, made the U.S. less safe and cost thousands of American lives. Gabbard later dropped out of the race and endorsed the ultimate winner, President .
Two years later she left the Democratic Party to become , saying her old party was dominated by an 鈥渆litist cabal of warmongers鈥� and 鈥渨oke鈥� ideologues. She subsequently campaigned for several high-profile Republicans and became a contributor to Fox 海角社区app.
She later endorsed Trump, who also was a strong critic of past U.S. wars in the Middle East and campaigned on a pledge to avoid unnecessary wars and nation-building overseas.
Iran caused early tensions
But friction with the president started soon after he began his second term and tapped Gabbard to lead ODNI, which was set up after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to improve coordination between the nation鈥檚 intelligence agencies.
Shortly after taking on the job, Gabbard testified before lawmakers that there was no intelligence suggesting Iran was seeking to develop nuclear weapons. After Trump launched attacks on Iranian nuclear sites in June he said Gabbard was wrong and that .
She appeared to be back in Trump鈥檚 good graces when she took a lead role in Trump鈥檚 effort to relitigate his 2020 election loss to Biden, whom Gabbard had endorsed. She appeared at an FBI search of election offices in Fulton County, Georgia, even though her office was created to focus on foreign espionage, not state elections.
Earlier this week, however, she testified to lawmakers during an annual threats hearing that last year鈥檚 strikes on Iran鈥檚 nuclear sites had 鈥渙bliterated鈥� their nuclear program and that there had been no subsequent effort to rebuild.
The statement seemed to complicate Trump鈥檚 repeated assertions that Iran posed an imminent threat and created several awkward exchanges with lawmakers who asked Gabbard for her opinion on Iran鈥檚 threat as the nation鈥檚 top intelligence official. She repeatedly said that it was Trump鈥檚 decision to strike, not hers.
鈥淚t is not the intelligence community鈥檚 responsibility to determine what is and is not an imminent threat,鈥� she said at one of this week鈥檚 hearings.
Gabbard wrought big changes in one year
Gabbard vowed to eliminate what she said was the politicization of intelligence by government insiders. But she quickly used her office to support some of Trump鈥檚 most partisan of arguments 鈥� that he won the 2020 election.
She also worked to the results of earlier investigations into Trump鈥檚 ties to Russia.
In her year on the job, Gabbard oversaw a sharp reduction in the intelligence workforce, as well as the creation of a new task force that she to the intelligence service.
Earlier this year an intelligence sector whistleblower filed a complaint that Gabbard was withholding intelligence for political reasons, a complaint that prompted calls from Democrats for Gabbard鈥檚 resignation.
Gabbard, 44, was born in the U.S. territory of American Samoa, raised in Hawaii and spent a year of her childhood in the Philippines. She was first elected as a 21-year-old to Hawaii鈥檚 House of Representatives but had to leave after one term when her National Guard unit deployed to Iraq.
As the first Hindu member of the House, Gabbard was sworn into office with her hand on the Bhagavad Gita, the Hindu devotional work. She was also the .
During her she became known for speaking out against her party鈥檚 leadership. Her early support for Sen. 鈥� 2016 Democratic presidential primary run made her a popular figure in progressive politics nationally.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
