The Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, is facing fresh accusations of concealing details about what has been described as an “unusual phone call between two members of foreign intelligence.” According to a whistleblower familiar with the situation, Gabbard allegedly broke intelligence community protocol by taking the information directly to the White House after learning that the discussion involved a close confidant of Donald Trump.
The allegations add to growing concerns that Gabbard has been steadily eroding the credibility and independence of the intelligence community. Just last week, she made another uncharacteristic trip for a DNI — this time to Georgia — where she joined FBI agents in searching election center offices. The goal, according to multiple reports, was to uncover evidence that could finally exonerate Trump’s controversial handling of the 2020 election loss.
What raised eyebrows was not just her presence, but her conduct. Gabbard reportedly spoke directly to agents on site, a move that all but guaranteed the investigation would no longer be viewed as independent. Whatever findings emerge will now be met with skepticism.
But it turns out that controversy had already been brewing months earlier. According to The Guardian, Washington has been roiled over revelations about how Gabbard has handled matters of national security. The whistleblower alleges that when Gabbard first learned of the intercepted intelligence, she took it straight to Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles. A day later, Gabbard allegedly instructed the NSA not to publish the intelligence report and instead requested that the classified details be sent directly to her.
On April 17, 2025, the whistleblower submitted an accusation to the Office of the Inspector General, claiming Gabbard was blocking highly classified intelligence from being properly disseminated. By May, the whistleblower had escalated the matter into a formal complaint against the Director of National Intelligence.
The whistleblower is represented by attorney Andrew Bakaj, who emphasized an important clarification as the case proceeds. Bakaj noted that the NSA does not spy on Americans unlawfully. “The NSA picked up a phone call between two members of foreign intelligence involving someone close to the Trump White House,” he said. “The NSA does not monitor individuals without a reason.”
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence pushed back forcefully. In a statement, a spokesperson said: “This story is false. Every single action taken by DNI Gabbard was fully within her legal and statutory authority, and these politically motivated attempts to manipulate highly classified information undermine the essential national security work being done by great Americans in the Intelligence Community every day. This is yet another attempt to distract from the fact that both a Biden-era and Trump-appointed Intelligence Community Inspector General already found the allegations against DNI Gabbard baseless.”
Still, lawyers and former intelligence officials familiar with the situation say there were a series of procedural anomalies — ones that, at the very least, lend credibility to criticisms that Gabbard has been clumsy in a role that demands restraint, distance, and institutional discipline.
This is far from an isolated concern. The Trump administration has repeatedly been accused of chipping away at the independence of agencies tasked with handling high-stakes intelligence. And when it comes to national security, even the perception of interference is dangerous.
Published: Feb 8, 2026 11:06 am