Tulsi Gabbard blasted the news media after President Donald Trump declared on Friday that his director of national intelligence was “wrong” in her evaluation of Iran’s nuclear weapons development capabilities.
After Trump’s statement on Friday, the DNI blamed the media of misrepresenting her testimony and shared a video of it on X.
In her March testimony on Capitol Hill, Gabbard stated that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons and that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s top leader, has not given his approval to the program.
“The dishonest media is intentionally taking my testimony out of context and spreading fake news as a way to manufacture division,” Gabbard stated. According to American intelligence, Iran is now capable of producing a nuclear weapon in a matter of weeks or months, if they choose to complete the assembly, she mentioned.
“President Trump has been clear that can’t happen, and I agree,” Gabbard concluded.
The rapid response team of the White House supported Gabbard, posting on X that the media should be ashamed for attempting to distort Gabbard’s testimony, which has continuously supported President Trump’s stance.
“FACT: @DNIGabbard has testified that Iran has produced levels of enriched uranium that is unprecedented [sic] for a nation without nuclear weapons. FACT: If Iran decides to finalize its assembly, the weapon would be weeks away from being operational.”
After Trump claimed that Gabbard was “wrong” about Iran, Vice President JD Vance also defended her, telling NewsNation in a statement: “Tulsi is a veteran, a patriot, a loyal supporter of Pres Trump and a critical part of the coalition he built in 2024. She’s an essential member of our nat sec team, & we’re grateful for her tireless work to keep America safe from foreign threats.”
Here’s what Trump and Iran’s top leader said on nukes
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s top leader, has not approved the nuclear weapons program, as per Gabbard’s March testimony on Capitol Hill, which stated that Iran is not developing a nuclear weapon.
In recent days, her testimony has come up again as Trump mulls over whether to authorize a US assault on Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment site deep underground in Fordo, joining Israel in its onslaught against Iran. Israel would need 30,000-pound bunker-busting weapons, which only the US can supply, in order to demolish the complex.
Trump has stated that he thinks Iran was “close” to having a nuclear weapon prior to Israel’s attacks against it last week, and Israel has long maintained that Iran is on the verge of producing one.
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Trump on Gabbard’s statement
When Trump was pressed if he has any information that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon, and his intelligence community had said they have no evidence that they are at this point”, he replied, “Well, then, my intelligence community is wrong,” asking that “Who in the intelligence community said that?”
When a reporter identified it as Gabbard, the president said, “She’s wrong.” On Monday, he made the same statement on Air Force One.
Trump will decide whether to launch an attack on Iran within the next two weeks, according to the White House.
