Toward the end of her opening statement, Gabbard spoke directly to the American people, addressing the “lies and smears” that her opponents have spread about her.
“Now, 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…” she continued, listing others and adding that her opponents accusing her of this are “not recognizing the absurdity of simultaneously being the puppet of five different puppet masters.”
“The same tactic was used against President Trump and failed,” she noted. “The American people elected President Trump with a decisive victory and mandate for change.”
She said:
The fact is, what truly unsettles my political opponents is I refuse to be their puppet. I have no love for Assad or Gaddafi or any dictator. I just hate al Qaeda. I hate that we have leaders who cozy up to Islamist extremists, minimizing them to so-called rebels, as Jake Sullivan said to Hillary Clinton, quote, “Al Qaeda is on our side in Syria.” Well, Syria is now controlled by an al Qaeda offshoot, HTS, led by an Islamist jihadist who danced in the streets on 9/11 and who was responsible for the killing of many American service members.
She also addressed those who seek to disqualify her because of her religious beliefs.
“Unfortunately, they’re once again using the religious bigotry card, but this time trying to foment religious bigotry against Hindus and Hinduism,” she said. … “If confirmed as Director of National Intelligence, I will continue to live by the oath that I have sworn at least eight times in my life, both in uniform and as a member of Congress.”
“I will support and defend our God-given freedoms enshrined in the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. Thank you very much for your time. I look forward to your questions,” the former congresswoman added.
WATCH:
Breitbart News
Read the full article .
