Tulsi Gabbard says Charlie Kirk understood the threat to freedom and worked to preserve it
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard reflects on the energy Charlie Kirk had and says she is ‘in awe of’ Erika Kirk’s strength in the face of ‘the toughest times’ at TPUSA's AmericaFest 2025 (Credit: Turning Point USA).
EXCLUSIVE: Tulsi Gabbard is resigning from her post as Director of National Intelligence to support her husband through his battle with "an extremely rare form of bone cancer," Fox News Digital learned.
Gabbard notified President Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office Friday. Her last day at ODNI is expected to be June 30.
Fox News Digital exclusively obtained her formal resignation letter, in which Gabbard says she is "deeply grateful for the trust you placed in me and for the opportunity to lead the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the last year and a half."
"Unfortunately, I must submit my resignation, effective June 30, 2026," she wrote. "My husband, Abraham, has recently been diagnosed with an extremely rare form of bone cancer."
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Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard testifies during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats at the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., on March 18, 2026. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Gabbard said her husband "faces major challenges in the coming weeks and months."
"At this time, I must step away from public service to be by his side and fully support him through this battle," she said.
Gabbard added: "Abraham has been my rock throughout our eleven years of marriage — standing steadfast through my deployment to East Africa on a Joint Special Operations mission, multiple political campaigns and now my service in this role."
"His strength and love have sustained me through every challenge," she continued. "I cannot in good conscience ask him to face this fight alone while I continue in this demanding and time-consuming position."
Gabbard said she has "made significant progress at the ODNI — advancing unprecedented transparency and restoring integrity to the intelligence community," but said she recognizes " there is still important work to be done."
"I am fully committed to ensuring a smooth and thorough transition over the coming weeks so that you and your team experience no disruption in leadership or momentum," she said.
Newly sworn in Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on February 12, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
"Thank you for your understanding during this deeply personal and difficult time for our family."
Gabbard added: "I will remain forever grateful to you and to the American people for the profound honor of serving our nation as DNI."
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Gabbard, as DNI, began a transformational effort to reshape the Intelligence Community— reducing the agency in size and saving taxpayers more than $700 million per year; dismantling DEI programs in the IC; and more.
Gabbard, as of this month, declassified more than half a million pages of government records, including those related to the Trump-Russia investigation, the JFK and RFK assassinations and more.
Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump's choice to be the Director of National Intelligence, arrives to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee for her confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell) (AP)
Gabbard also declassified documents tied to the origins of the Trump-Russia "Crossfire Hurricane" probe, arguing they showed Obama administration officials politicized intelligence related to Russia’s 2016 election interference and used it to undermine Trump’s first presidential victory.
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Meanwhile, Gabbard created the first-ever "Weaponization Working Group," aimed at coordinating efforts across the federal government to expose the Biden Admin’s weaponization of government.
As DNI, Gabbard’s National Counterterrorism Center prevented more than 10,000 individuals with ties to narco-terrorism from entering the country in 2025 and placed more than 85,000 similarly tied individuals on the terror watchlist.
