Crucial moderate GOP senator backs Tulsi Gabbard ahead of committee vote

Moderate Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, revealed her program to enactment Tulsi Gabbard's information to beryllium Director of National Intelligence (DNI) connected Monday evening. 

"After extended information of her nomination, I volition enactment Tulsi Gabbard to beryllium the Director of National Intelligence," she said successful a statement. 

"As 1 of the main authors of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 that established this coordinating position, I recognize the captious relation the DNI plays successful the Intelligence Community. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, however, has go acold larger than it was designed to be, and Ms. Gabbard shares my imaginativeness of returning the bureau to its intended size. In effect to my questions during our treatment successful my bureau and astatine the unfastened hearing, arsenic good arsenic done her mentation astatine the closed proceeding earlier the Senate Intelligence Committee, Ms. Gabbard addressed my concerns regarding her views connected Edward Snowden. I look guardant to moving with Ms. Gabbard to fortify our nationalist security."

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Collins said she would ballot to beforehand Gabbard's nomination. (Reuters)

Collins sits connected the Senate Select Committee connected Intelligence, which volition embark connected a pivotal ballot connected Gabbard's information connected Tuesday, sources confirmed to Fox News Digital. 

The Maine Republican has developed a estimation for occasionally bucking her party, astir precocious doing truthful connected Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's confirmation vote. 

Her enactment for Gabbard astatine the committee level was frankincense acold from certain. 

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Collins voted against Pete Hegseth. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

She joins a fistful of different committee Republicans who person already said they volition ballot to beforehand Gabbard to the Senate floor, including Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and James Lankford, R-Okla. 

However, different GOP legislator connected the committee is inactive considered 1 to watch, arsenic Gabbard is expected to request each of the Republican members' votes to determination forward. 

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Young hasn't revealed however helium plans to vote. (Alex Wong)

Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., hasn't said however helium plans to ballot successful committee. Because of this, he's managed to garner the disapproval of Trump-aligned billionaire Elon Musk, who precocious claimed connected X that Young is simply a "deep authorities puppet" successful respect to his uncertainty astir Gabbard. The station has since been deleted.

A spokesperson for Young told Fox News Digital successful a statement, "Senator Young and Mr. Musk had a large speech connected a fig of subjects and argumentation areas wherever they person a shared interest, similar DOGE."

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Musk spoke with Young connected the phone. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

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Musk besides shared connected X implicit the weekend, explaining, "Just had an fantabulous speech with [Young]. I basal corrected. Senator Young volition beryllium a large state successful restoring powerfulness to the radical from the vast, unelected bureaucracy." 

While Collins' enactment bodes good for Gabbard's destiny astatine the committee level, it besides forecasts a amended outlook among the afloat Senate, fixed her ballot against Hegseth. If she advances to a level vote, Gabbard tin spend to suffer conscionable 3 Republican votes, assuming she does not get immoderate Democratic backing.