While publicly supporting her, Trump aides were blindsided, creating a rift as both leaders united at Charlie Kirk's memorial service. (Image: File)
A striking mix of politics, personal homage, and internal tensions played out at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, where DNI Tulsi Gabbard and President Trump honored late conservative figure Charlie Kirk. The memorial service provided a dramatic setting for a developing issue, as it was revealed that Gabbard had unexpectedly revoked the security clearances of 37 people, shocking the White House.
Targeting senior intelligence officials, including CIA Director John Ratcliffe's deputies, the action has revealed a rare division within the Trump administration's top echelons and raised concerns about procedure, autonomy, and the continued purge of the "deep state."
Last month, Tulsi Gabbard’s office revoked the security clearances of 37 current and former intelligence professionals. The action, however, was taken without informing White House aides beforehand, a move that sources say left President Trump’s team surprised and unaware.
According to The Guardian, the list was comprehensive, including high-ranking officials close to the top of the intelligence community. Gabbard’s deputy chief of staff, Alexa Henning, reportedly did not reveal how the list was compiled before the Director publicly announced the move on social media platform X.
On August 19, Gabbard took to X to frame the action as a direct implementation of President Trump’s objectives. She stated she was acting under the President’s directive to target those who “have abused the public trust by politicizing and manipulating intelligence, leaking classified intelligence without authorization, and/or committing intentional egregious violations of tradecraft standards.”
“Being entrusted with a security clearance is a privilege, not a right,” Gabbard wrote. “Those in the Intelligence Community who betray their oath to the Constitution and put their own interests ahead of the interests of the American people have broken the sacred trust they promised to uphold.”
Publicly, the White House is presenting a unified front. A White House spokesperson declined to confirm whether advance notice had been given but offered strong support for Gabbard in a statement, saying, “Director Gabbard is doing a phenomenal job and the White House has worked closely with her on implementing the President’s objectives.”
The spokesperson added that the entire administration is aligned on holding accountable those who have "weaponized their clearances." Privately, however, aides confess to being blindsided by the move, suggesting a potential power play by the 44-year-old intelligence chief who operates with a significant degree of independence.
Also Read: ‘He Died Happy, Like Jesus…’: Erika Kirk’s Heartbreaking Account of Charlie’s Final Goodbye
The simultaneous arrival of both Trump and Gabbard at Charlie Kirk’s memorial service is highly symbolic. At a time when internal tensions are seething, it gives their conservative base the impression that they are united and working toward a common goal.
The service for Kirk, a figure who built his career on challenging the establishment, provides a politically potent stage for two leaders who are actively engaged in a very public confrontation with the federal bureaucracy they believe he fought against.
