Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump’s pick to become intelligence chief, fought back against what she called “smears,” declaring she is nobody’s “puppet” at her confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday. 

She told senators her opponents accuse her “of being Trump’s puppet, Putin’s puppet, Assad’s puppet, a guru’s puppet, Modi’s puppet, not recognizing the absurdity of simultaneously being the puppet of five different puppet masters.”