Former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) is President Donald Trump’s nominee to become the director of national intelligence.
Gabbard is now before the U.S. Senate for confirmation hearings, a committee vote and a vote of the full U.S. Senate.
A lot about Gabbard’s life experiences is well-known: Her service as the youngest member of the Hawaii state legislature from 2002 to 2004, her extensive military service, her term on the Honolulu City Council from 2011-2012, her terms as a Democrat in Congress from 2013 to 2021, her brief 2020 run for president in the Democrat presidential primaries, her leaving the Democrat Party and becoming an independent in 2022, her joining the GOP and supporting Donald Trump for president in 2024.
What is not well-known is that she was trained in Alabama.
Gabbard had joined the Hawaii National Guard in 2003. She was deployed to Iraq in 2004-2005.
Gabbard arrived in Alabama in 2007. She took and completed the officer training program at the Alabama Military Academy. She was the first female to graduate as a distinguished honor graduate in the academy’s 50-year history.
The academy is located at Fort McClellan Army National Guard Training Center outside Anniston. Their motto is “It shall be done.”
Gabbard and her classmates performed a six-mile march at the famous Talladega Superspeedway, where NASCAR races are run.
When Gabbard was deployed to Iraq in 2004-2005, she served as a specialist with the MASH medical unit and received the Combat Medical Badge.
After completing her training in Alabama, she was deployed to Kuwait in 2008-2009 as an MP, an Army Military Police platoon leader.
In 2015, while serving in Congress, she was promoted to Major in the Hawaii Army National Guard. In 2020, still in progress, she transferred to the Army Reserve and was promoted to Lt. Colonel.
In Congress, Gabbard was outspoken against Islamic terrorism and U.S. intervention in the Syrian civil war. She was one of a handful of Democrats who criticized the Obama administration for not recognizing Islamic extremism as a terror threat.
She served on the House Armed Service Committee for four terms.
A vote is expected by early next week on whether the Senate will confirm Gabbard’s nomination.
“It shall be done.”
Jim ‘Zig’ Zeigler writes about Alabama’s people, places, events, groups and prominent deaths. He is a former Alabama Public Service Commissioner and State Auditor. You can reach him for comments at ZeiglerElderCare@yahoo.com.
Don’t miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
