Whistleblower Alleges Intelligence Director Gabbard Obstructed Complaint to Congress

WASHINGTON — A high-stakes confrontation is unfolding between the nation's top intelligence official and a whistleblower within her own agency, with accusations that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard improperly delayed a sensitive complaint from reaching Congress for nearly eight months.

The complaint, filed with the Intelligence Community Inspector General in May of last year, alleges unspecified "wrongdoing" by Gabbard. According to the whistleblower's attorney, Andrew Bakaj, the director's office failed to transmit the disclosure to the congressional intelligence committees as required by law after the whistleblower requested it be shared with lawmakers in June.

"Director Gabbard has engaged in a pattern of delay and obstruction, illegally inserting herself into a process designed to be independent," Bakaj said in a statement released by the nonprofit Whistle Blower Aid. "Her actions have jeopardized Congress's constitutional duty to oversee the intelligence community."

The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the complaint, noted that Gabbard's office cited ongoing efforts to develop security guidance to protect classified information within the document as the reason for the delay. However, former intelligence officials told NBC News that such security reviews typically take days or weeks, not months.

Gabbard's press secretary, Olivia Coleman, forcefully rejected the allegations on social media platform X. She confirmed a "baseless" complaint was filed but stated Gabbard had ultimately shared it with Congress. "There was absolutely NO wrongdoing by DNI Gabbard," Coleman wrote, alleging the whistleblower was "politically motivated." She added that a previous inspector general found the allegations lacked credibility.

The timeline remains contested. According to two sources familiar with the matter, lawmakers on the House and Senate Intelligence Committees were unaware of the complaint until November, after Bakaj wrote to Gabbard demanding an explanation for the holdup. An official from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) countered that Gabbard was not informed of her responsibility to produce the necessary security guidance until October, when a new inspector general took office, and acted "immediately" thereafter.

The complaint reportedly contains elements potentially covered by attorney-client and executive privilege, a detail that could implicate the White House. When asked for comment, the White House referred inquiries to Coleman's social media posts.

The delay has drawn concern from Capitol Hill. A spokesperson for Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-Va.) said the senator "expects [Gabbard] to honor" her sworn confirmation hearing commitments to protect whistleblowers and ensure their direct access to Congress.

ANALYSIS & REACTION

The standoff tests the integrity of post-9/11 whistleblower protections established to prevent intelligence abuses. Legal experts note that the Intelligence Community Whistleblower Protection Act mandates a direct channel to Congress, designed to bypass potential agency retaliation. A prolonged delay, regardless of the reason, undermines this core safeguard.

Voices from the Policy Sphere:

"This is a dangerous precedent," says Elena Rodriguez, a former CIA analyst and now a senior fellow at the Center for Ethics in Government. "The system relies on timely transmission. Even if the allegations are unfounded, the process itself must be beyond reproach to maintain trust within the ranks and with the public."

"It's bureaucratic incompetence, not malfeasance," argues David Chen, a national security lawyer who has worked with the ODNI. "The transition between inspectors general created a procedural gap. While regrettable, framing this as a deliberate cover-up is a leap without seeing the complaint's actual content."

"This is a blatant, cowardly cover-up," fires Marcus Thorne, a political commentator and host of the "Accountability Now" podcast. "Gabbard, an appointee of this administration, has stonewalled for eight months. She swore an oath to uphold the law, not to protect her own office from scrutiny. This reeks of the same secrecy that has plagued intelligence oversight for decades."

"The substance matters," notes Priya Sharma, a professor of constitutional law at Georgetown. "If the complaint touches on executive privilege, it places the White House in the frame. The longer the details remain hidden, the more it fuels speculation and erodes institutional credibility on all sides."

The ODNI has not commented on when or if the full, unredacted complaint will be delivered to the intelligence committees.