Former Democrat and military veteran Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's pick to be director of national intelligence was grilled about her past remarks supporting government whistleblower Edward Snowden as well as her relationships with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syria's former dictator Bashar al-Assad.

Critics blasted the meeting as legitimizing Assad four years after he used lethal chemical weapons on Syrian civilians. "It was common knowledge that Assad was gassing the civilian population,