Former Democrat Congresswoman and Hawaii Representative Tulsi Gabbard is reportedly setting her sights on the Defense Secretary position in President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration.
Sources close to Trump’s transition team have disclosed that Gabbard, who recently realigned with the Republican Party, has expressed a strong interest in leading the Pentagon under Trump’s upcoming term, the New York Post has learned.
According to one GOP insider, Gabbard is expected to privately approach Trump about her Pentagon aspirations this week, with additional interest in a potential CIA Director role.
The Post reported:
A source close to the transition told The Post that Gabbard, who is serving as an adviser to that team, is believed to be interested in the defense job — but faces competition from former Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, who is leading the transition’s Pentagon team.
This source said Gabbard would be “way better” than “weak” Wilkie, whose tenure in the first Trump administration was marred by allegations he mishandled a sexual assault report while serving as undersecretary of Pentagon personnel and readiness — the office that handles the Defense Department’s sexual assault prevention and policies.
Others also floated as contenders for the defense secretary post include Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who has earned favor in military circles for working closely with the Pentagon on defense legislation, and House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), GOP sources told The Post.
Gabbard became an honorary member of Trump’s transition team after endorsing the former president during his re-election campaign and switching her membership to the Republican Party.
She has been a member of the National Guard since 2003, deploying to Iraq, Kuwait and the Horn of Africa.
However, that could throw an obstacle in the way of her serving Trump, as federal law holds that a defense secretary cannot have served on active duty in the armed forces for at least seven years before taking office — a provision intended to ensure a civilian-run military.
Gabbard enlisted in the Hawaii Army National Guard in 2003 and served in Iraq from 2004 to 2005 as part of a field medical unit. She later received a commission as a second lieutenant and served as a military police officer in Kuwait from 2008 to 2009.
In 2015, she became a major in the Hawaii Army National Guard and later transferred to the Army Reserve
In 2021, she was promoted to lieutenant colonel while serving as a Civil Affairs officer in the Horn of Africa.
If Gabbard is nominated to lead the Pentagon, Congress would need to approve a waiver to bypass the seven-year requirement—similar to the exemptions it recently granted to Trump’s first Defense Secretary, James Mattis, and the current Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin, according to The Post.
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