Tulsi Gabbard will step down as United States Director of National Intelligence at the end of June, ending a tenure in President Donald Trump’s administration that drew both praise from allies and criticism over intelligence oversight and foreign policy disputes.
Gabbard announced her resignation in a letter posted on X, saying her husband’s recent diagnosis with a rare form of bone cancer made it impossible for her to continue in the demanding role.
“I cannot in good conscience ask him to face this fight alone while I continue in this demanding and time-consuming position,” she wrote.
Trump confirmed the resignation on Truth Social, saying Gabbard “has done an incredible job, and we will miss her.”
The resignation will take effect on June 30, with Principal Deputy Director Aaron Lukas expected to serve as acting director.
Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii and Army National Guard veteran, became one of Trump’s most prominent allies after leaving the Democratic Party in 2022.
She joined Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign and later became part of his transition team before being confirmed as director of national intelligence in 2025.
During her political career, Gabbard frequently criticized US military intervention abroad, a position shaped in part by her deployment during the Iraq War.
Her anti-interventionist stance later appeared to clash with the Trump administration’s military actions involving Iran and Venezuela.
She was reportedly sidelined during the administration’s operation targeting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and initially avoided publicly endorsing US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
Later, she defended the administration’s actions, stating that the president was responsible for determining imminent threats.
Gabbard’s leadership of the intelligence community faced repeated scrutiny from Democratic lawmakers and foreign policy observers.
Critics questioned the dismissal of officials from the National Intelligence Council after a report contradicted administration claims linking Venezuela’s government to the Tren de Aragua gang.
Her appearance at an FBI raid on an election center in Georgia also raised concerns among some lawmakers over the scope of her authority.
The intelligence office additionally faced allegations that it had become politicized and had withheld intelligence from Congress.
Several Republican lawmakers praised her work following the announcement, while some foreign policy analysts said her departure could provide further insight into internal debates surrounding the administration’s military decisions.