Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced today that she is resigning, effective at the end of June.
However, her resignation came with a reason – and not one that anyone was expecting. Tulsi Gabbard informed President Trump in her resignation letter that her husband is dealing with bone cancer, and she wants to devote her time to supporting him.
Official resignation letter @DNIGabbard pic.twitter.com/EFdlQ838pK
— Brooke Singman (@BrookeSingman) May 22, 2026
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.”
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’s tenure at ODNI has been mixed, and rumors of her leaving the administration have been swirling about for a while. Our readers will remember that Tulsi Gabbard ran as a Democrat for president in 2020, and had her shining moment clocking Kamala Harris on the debate stage (too bad that wasn’t the end of Kamala Harris’s involvement in the 2020 campaign after she dropped out before Iowa). However, Gabbard slowly began moving away from the Democrats during the Biden administration, and was on the ground in Maui in the aftermath of the devastating fires in Lahaina, emphasizing just how dire the situation was – and Joe Biden’s utter lack of care until he was shamed into it – and for that, the Biden administration labeled her a security threat. During the 2024 election, Gabbard threw her support behind Donald Trump, and was confirmed as Director of National Intelligence when he began assembling his second administration.
So what did Tulsi Gabbard do during her tenure at ODNI? She did declassify a lot of documents regarding both President Trump’s first impeachment and the Russian collusion hoax, but she says in her resignation letter that there is still more to do, and leaves the impression that all was not smooth sailing for her in the administration.
Gabbard had clashed with her CIA counterpart, John Ratcliffe, and other administration officials. During pivotal moments as Trump deliberated over possible military action or watched live video feeds of operations in Iran or Venezuela, Gabbard was often not in the room, underscoring her outsider status.
But in the end, she wasn’t ousted like former Attorney General Pam Bondi or former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. She is the fourth Cabinet member — all women — to leave Trump’s administration, including former Labor Secretary Lori Chavez De Remer, who resigned amid an investigation into misconduct.
“While we have made significant progress,” Gabbard wrote to Trump, “I recognize there is still important work to be done.”
Gabbard posted her letter on X Friday afternoon, writing that it had been “a profound honor” to serve the American people. Aaron Lukas, the principal deputy director of national security, will serve as acting head of intelligence.
There had been speculation for months that Gabbard might be out of a job.
Her less-than-full-throated endorsement of the president’s decision to go to war with Iran, unlike other Cabinet officials, raised fresh questions about whether Trump would keep her — or whether she might resign in protest.
She looked uncomfortable as she fielded questions at the congressional intelligence hearings after Joe Kent, the head of the National Counterterrorism Center, resigned, citing his strong objections to the decision to go to war against Iran despite the absence of an “imminent threat.”
Kent and Gabbard, both military veterans, had found political common ground over their opposition to foreign military interventions.
Allies who shared her anti-interventionist views appealed to Gabbard to resign both before and after Kent left, but she declined, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
Any internal squabbles within the administration have understandably been set aside in the wake of this news. President Trump offered his understanding and best wishes, and acknowledged her replacement at ODNI.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 22, 2026
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also offered his prayers for her husband.
Honored to work with you @TulsiGabbard — and prayers for Abe. Two great Americans…and even better people. https://t.co/0aOeBDbDpo
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) May 22, 2026
Even though Gabbard’s views of foreign policy often clashed with the official line of the Trump administration, we here at Victory Girls acknowledge her efforts in her role at ODNI, and offer our prayers for her husband’s full recovery. This is obviously a battle that no couple wants to face, and no one can argue with Gabbard’s desire to stand by her husband during his treatment.
Featured image: Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, official portrait, cropped, government work in the public domain
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