Tulsi Gabbard Breaks Silence With Emotional Announcement
Tulsi Gabbard Steps Down as Trump’s DNI in Emotional Exit After Husband’s Rare Cancer Diagnosis
Tulsi Gabbard stepped down Friday as Director of National Intelligence, saying she needs to leave her high-level post to care for her husband after he was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer.
In a resignation letter sent to President Donald Trump and posted on social media, Gabbard set her last day as June 30. The move comes just over a year and a half into her role as head of the nation’s intelligence community.
“I am deeply grateful for the trust you placed in me,” Gabbard wrote. “Unfortunately, I must submit my resignation, effective June 30, 2026.
“My husband, Abraham, has recently been diagnosed with an extremely rare form of bone cancer. He faces major challenges in the coming weeks and months. At this time, I must step away from public service to be by his side and fully support him through this battle.”
Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii who later became an independent and joined Trump’s administration, described her husband as her rock during their 11 years of marriage.
She mentioned his support through her military deployment, political campaigns, and now her time in intelligence work.
“His strength and love have seen me through every challenge,” she wrote. I cannot, in good conscience, ask him to fight this battle alone in my being in this demanding, time-consuming position.
She cited work done under her watch, including increased transparency and efforts to restore integrity to the intelligence agencies. She promised to assist with a smooth transition so that operations can continue without a hitch.
“Thank you for your support during this very difficult and personal time for our family,” she wrote. “I will always be grateful to you and the American people for the great honor of serving our nation as DNI.”
Born in American Samoa and raised in Hawaii, Gabbard served in the Hawaii Army National Guard and deployed to Iraq.
She entered Congress in 2013 and gained national attention for her anti-interventionist foreign policy views. She ran for president in 2020 before leaving the Democratic Party.
Trump named Gabbard DNI after winning the 2024 election. She was applauded by those who saw her as an outsider who could shake up the intelligence bureaucracy.
However, she was criticized by traditional Washington figures who questioned her past comments on foreign policy and national security.
Since taking office, Gabbard has sought to reform parts of the intelligence community. In public appearances, she emphasized the need for agencies to focus on real threats and avoid politicization.
President Trump Responds to Gabbard’s Resignation
President Donald Trump responded to Gabbard’s resignation in a statement released Friday afternoon, noting that she has done a commendable job.
“Unfortunately, after having done a great job, Tulsi Gabbard will be leaving the Administration on June 30th,” Trump said. “Her wonderful husband, Abraham, has been recently diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, and she, 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. Tulsi has done an incredible job, and we will miss her.”
Trump added that her Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, Aaron Lukas, will serve as Acting Director of National Intelligence.
The announcement quickly drew reactions across social media, with many Americans offering prayers for the family and thanks for her service.
Many users also posted messages wishing Abraham a full recovery and thanking Tulsi for her time in government.
Clarence Thomas Blasts Supreme Court For Refusing Florida Case
Florida argued the two states were undermining public safety by allowing individuals without legal immigration status — and, in some cases, insufficient English-language proficiency — to obtain commercial trucking licenses despite federal standards intended to govern interstate transportation safety.
The dispute gained national attention after a deadly 2025 crash on the Florida Turnpike involving an undocumented truck driver reportedly licensed through California or Washington.
According to the lawsuit, the driver allegedly made an illegal U-turn and was unable to properly interpret roadway signage, resulting in a collision that killed three people.
Joined by Justice Samuel Alito, Thomas argued the high court had a constitutional obligation to hear the interstate dispute because Florida had no other legal forum available to challenge another state’s policies.
The court’s majority denied Florida’s request without explanation.
The case underscores the growing national clash over immigration enforcement, state licensing authority, and whether states with looser immigration policies are creating broader public safety consequences for the rest of the country.
Thomas ripped the majority for refusing to hear the lawsuit since disputes between states can only be brought before the Supreme Court.
“If this Court does not exercise jurisdiction over a controversy between two States, then the complaining State has no judicial forum in which to seek relief,” Thomas wrote.
Thomas argued that Florida’s allegations against California and Washington raised serious public safety concerns, warning that failures to properly follow federal commercial driver licensing (CDL) laws can create dangerous conditions on American roadways.
Thomas pointed to the fatal Florida highway crash involving truck driver Harjinder Singh, who he said “could not read the road signs,” and argued Florida deserved a chance to pursue its claims.
Two blue states – California and Washington – issued Singh a CDL.
“An illegal alien who cannot read English road signs cannot drive an 80,000-pound tractor-trailer,” Thomas wrote.
“Federal law and regulations prohibit States from providing commercial driver’s licenses to applicants unless they pass a driver’s test, sufficiently understand the English language, and show appropriate immigration status,” he added.
Thomas argued that while the Supreme Court of the United States may have broad discretion when deciding whether to hear ordinary appeals, disputes between states occupy a different category because the Constitution grants the high court exclusive jurisdiction over those cases.
“We have no more right to decline the exercise of jurisdiction which is given, than to usurp that which is not given,” Thomas wrote.
He also accused the court of failing to follow the Constitution by refusing to hear disputes between states.
“This Court has adopted a discretionary approach to its exclusive original jurisdiction based on policy judgments that are in conflict with the policy choices that Congress made in the statutory text,” Thomas wrote.
Thomas argued that if Florida, California, and Washington were separate sovereign nations rather than American states, a dispute involving one government allegedly allowing unsafe drivers into another jurisdiction could trigger major diplomatic conflict.
Thomas suggested that in an international context, such disputes would likely be addressed through international courts, treaties, or direct government action.
“By entering the Union, States agree to instead have such disputes resolved by this Court,” he wrote.
The issuance of commercial driver’s licenses to non-citizens came under increased scrutiny from the Department of Transportation last summer following a series of deadly crashes involving undocumented immigrant truck drivers.
Last September, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced stricter federal requirements for non-citizens seeking commercial driver’s licenses, part of a broader push by the Trump administration to tighten transportation and immigration enforcement standards, Fox News reported.
Duffy also warned that California could risk losing federal transportation funding if the state continued allowing commercial licenses to remain active for individuals deemed ineligible under revised federal guidelines.
