In a column for the Washington Post, a senior political correspondent for the National Review suggested one of Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees might want to withdraw their name because the position isn't worth the peril to their reputation.
According to conservative journalist Jim Geraghty, the position of Director of National Intelligence (DNI) is low-reward and high-risk for whoever takes it, as history has proved.
With former Democrat Rep. Tulsi Gabbard tapped by Trump to fill the position of pulling together information from America's wide array of intelligence divisions, the columnist suggested she might want to think twice about accepting –– particularly since there is skepticism about her acceptability from both sides of the aisle.
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Pointing out that her mandate, should she be approved by the Senate, would be to shake up the intel community, Geraghty pointed out that is easier said than done and she would be headed for a "bitter disappointment."
Writing, "The lone intelligence agency that does not report to another Cabinet official is the CIA. Trump’s pick to be CIA director, John Ratcliffe, served as DNI from May 2020 to the end of Trump’s term. What does it tell us that Ratcliffe didn’t want the job a second time?" he added. "Since the position was created in 2004, directors of national intelligence have realized that they get a nice title, a nice view from the office at Liberty Crossing in McLean, Virginia, and way less authority than they expected — and that they make a convenient scapegoat for anything that goes wrong. "
The columnist also pointed to another roadblock to her path to success: secretary of state nominee, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), with whom she has a turbulent relationship since she called him part of the "neocon warmongering establishment of Washington, D.C.," in an interview with conservative podcaster Megyn Kelly earlier this year.
"Well, now Rubio is set to play a key role in the forthcoming Trump administration’s foreign policy. Yeah, these two are going to work together just great!" he wrote.
"Some Senate Republicans have been put off by Gabbard’s kookier statements and stances, and it’s possible that one or more will want to punish her by denying her the DNI post," he predicted before sarcastically adding, " But considering that the job is a thankless, frustrating combination of heavy responsibility and limited power, if GOP senators really want to punish Gabbard, they’ll vote to confirm her."
You can read his entire column here.
