Exclusive: How Roger Stone persuaded Trump not to fire Tulsi Gabbard
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President Trump sounded ready to dismiss top intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard until he got an earful last week from one of his oldest friends and advisers, Roger Stone, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Trump was displeased with Gabbard when she didn't wholeheartedly endorse the Iran war during her recent testimony to Congress about threats to the U.S., according to five advisers and confidants who spoke with the president.
- The day before, Gabbard's former adviser and counterterrorism director, Joe Kent, quit his post in a headline-grabbing resignation that undercut the administration's message campaign about the danger posed by Iran.
Inside the room: Trump "scolded" Gabbard in a private meeting soon afterward and questioned her loyalty, two of the sources said.
- Two others said Trump wasn't that mad, and instead chided Gabbard in a sarcastic but friendly way.
Zoom in: Trump started polling advisers on their opinions of Gabbard's testimony, her job performance and whether to replace her, The Guardian reported a week later.
- Her fellow Cabinet officials backed her, as did Stone when the president called him last week, Axios has learned.
- "Roger sealed the deal. He saved Tulsi," a source familiar with Trump's thinking told Axios.
- Stone declined to comment but confirmed Thursday on X that he interceded on Gabbard's behalf: "Fortunately, I acted in time."
Between the lines: Stone, 73, has been a friend and adviser to Trump, 79, since 1979 and has a special relationship with the president no one else has. He gave four reasons for Trump to keep Gabbard, according to two people who spoke with Stone:
- Gabbard was loyal, gave congressional testimony in a professional manner and never disputed the president.
- Gabbard wasn't going to resign like Kent and didn't deserve to be proactively fired.
- Firing Gabbard would needlessly create a damaging news cycle for Trump — and make her into a martyr of sorts for those in the president's base agitated by the war.
- If she were fired and given that aura of credibility among MAGA dissenters, Gabbard could become a potent GOP presidential candidate in a little over a year. That might hurt Trump's preferred successor, Vice President Vance, in the early 2028 primary states of New Hampshire and South Carolina.
The intrigue: Stone's advocacy for Gabbard has led to a bitter feud with another Trump adviser — Laura Loomer, a frequent critic of Gabbard, whom Loomer accuses of disloyalty.
- "Tulsi is done," Loomer wrote on X last week. "The White House wants zero drama so they gave her the option to resign, but ... she will do a lot of damage if she is given the choice to resign because she will launch her 2028 presidential campaign."
- A Gabbard ally told Axios it's "absolutely false" that she was offered a chance to resign and pointed out that Trump has stood by Gabbard repeatedly.
Friction point: The dividing line in the controversy is Israel. Loomer and other Gabbard critics faulted her for hiring Kent, whom they accused of antisemitism when he resigned and accused Israel of manipulating Trump into war with Iran.
- Kent denied the allegation as a smear.
- Gabbard recently hired a critic of U.S.-Israel policy, Dan Caldwell, at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which pro-Israel Trump supporters also criticized.
The backstory: A former Democratic congresswoman and combat veteran, Gabbard is a longtime critic of foreign wars and U.S. policy in the Middle East.
- Before Trump joined Israel's bombing campaign of Iran last year in Operation Midnight Hammer, he got annoyed with Gabbard for posting a video on her X account in which she talked about visiting Hiroshima. She warned that the "political elite and warmongers" are "carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers."
- There was tension last year between Gabbard and CIA Director John Ratcliffe over her decision to pull the security clearances of some officials without consulting him.
- Gabbard was cut out of some crucial meetings in the run-up to the current war in Iran.
What they're saying: An ODNI spokesperson said Gabbard "remains committed to fulfilling the responsibilities the President placed in her to protect the safety, security and freedom of the American people. She will continue to work tirelessly on behalf of President Trump's agenda."
- White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: "President Trump believes Tulsi Gabbard is doing an excellent job on behalf of the administration. She is a key member of his national security team."
