Tulsi Gabbard Spits Fire In Opening Statement: ‘I Refuse To Be Their Puppet!’

Director of National Intelligence designate Tulsi Gabbard torched her detractors during her opening statement to the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday, addressing their likely attacks before they even had a chance to deliver them.

Gabbard wrapped up her statement by predicting that Democrats on the committee — with whom she had previously shared party affiliation — would challenge her loyalty to the United States and question whether she was a “puppet” beholden to President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, or a host of others.

WATCH:

DNI Director-designate @TulsiGabbard: Democrats have accused me of being Trump’s puppet, Putin’s puppet, Assad’s puppet, a guru’s puppet, Modi’s puppet — but what truly unsettles them is I refuse to be THEIR puppet. ???? pic.twitter.com/nphSJ26r1M

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 30, 2025

“Before I close, I want to warn the American people who are watching at home: you may hear lies and smears in this hearing that will challenge my loyalty to and my love for our country,” she said.

“Those who oppose my nomination imply that I am loyal to something or someone other than God, my own conscience, and the Constitution of the United States, accusing me of being Trump’s puppet, Putin’s puppet, Assad’s puppet, a guru’s puppet, Modi’s puppet — not recognizing the absurdity of simultaneously being the puppet of five different puppet-masters,” Gabbard continued.

“The same tactic was used against President Trump and failed,” Gabbard said, referencing the efforts made by the Left and legacy media to falsely tie Trump to Russia.

“The American people elected Trump with a decisive victory and mandate for change,” she added. “The fact is, what truly unsettles my political opponents is that I refuse to be THEIR puppet.”

Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) also predicted that opponents would question Gabbard’s loyalty and dedication to the United States, saying that such criticisms were ridiculous and unfounded.

“Hillary Clinton has basically called her a traitor in the past. This is a woman who served more than 20 years in our nation’s army. She’s passed five different background checks. I reviewed the latest one. It’s clean as a whistle. It’s fine for people to have policy differences and ask questions about those differences. I hope no one would impugn Mrs. Gabbard’s patriotism or her integrity,” Cotton said.