The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as President Donald Trump’s Director of National Intelligence after Republicans who had initially questioned her experience and judgment fell in line behind her nomination.

Gabbard was an unconventional pick to oversee and coordinate the country’s 18 different intelligence agencies, given her past comments sympathetic to Russia, a meeting she held with now-deposed Syrian President Bashar Assad and her previous support for government leaker Edward Snowden.

Gabbard, a military veteran and former Democratic Congresswoman from Hawaii, was confirmed by a 52-48 vote, with Democrats opposed in the sharply divided Senate where Republicans hold a slim majority. The only “no’ vote from a Republican came from U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

She will take over the top intelligence post as Trump works to reshape vast portions of the federal government. Intelligence agencies including the CIA have issued voluntary resignation offers to staffers, while cybersecurity experts have raised concerns about Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency gaining access to sensitive government databases containing information about intelligence operations.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence was created to address intelligence failures exposed by the Sept. 11, 2001. Republicans have increasingly criticized the office, saying it has grown too large and politicized. Trump himself has long viewed the nation’s intelligence services with suspicion.

GOP Senators who had expressed concerns about Gabbard’s stance on Snowden, Syria and Russia said they were won over by her promise to refocus on the office’s core missions: coordinating federal intelligence work and serving as the president’s chief intelligence adviser.

Democrats noted that Gabbard had no experience working for an intelligence agency and said her past stances on Russia, Syria and Snowden made her a poor choice for the job. They also questioned whether she would stand up to Trump if necessary and could maintain vital intelligence sharing with American allies.

“It is an insult to people who have dedicated their lives and put themselves in harm’s way to have her confirmed into this position,” said Democratic U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, a former CIA analyst, about members of America’s intelligence service.

Until GOP support fell into place, it was unclear whether Gabbard’s nomination would succeed. Given the 53-47 split in the Senate, Gabbard needed virtually all Republicans to vote “yes.”

Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base has pressured senators to support Trump’s nominees, and Musk, the President’s ally, took to social media recently to brand U.S. Sen. Todd Young, an Indiana Republican, as a “deep-state puppet.” Young had raised concerns about Gabbard but announced his support after speaking with Musk. The post was deleted after they spoke, and Musk later called Young an ally.

Gabbard is a lieutenant colonel in the National Guard who deployed twice to the Middle East and ran for President in 2020. She has no formal intelligence experience and has never run a government agency or department.

Gabbard’s past praise of Snowden drew particularly harsh questions during her confirmation hearing. Snowden, a former National Security Agency contractor, fled to Russia after he was charged with revealing classified information about U.S. surveillance programs.

Gabbard said that while Snowden disclosed important facts about such programs that she believes are unconstitutional, he violated rules about protecting classified secrets. “Edward Snowden broke the law,” she said.

Gabbard’s 2017 visit with Assad was another flashpoint. He was recently deposed following a brutal civil war in which he was accused of using chemical weapons.

Following her visit, Gabbard faced criticism that she was legitimizing a dictator, and then there were more questions when she said she was skeptical that Assad had used such weapons.

Gabbard defended her meeting with Assad, saying she used the opportunity to press the Syrian leader on his human rights record.

“I asked him tough questions about his own regime’s actions,” Gabbard said.

She also has repeatedly echoed Russian propaganda used to justify the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine. In the past, she opposed a key U.S. surveillance program known as Section 702, which allows authorities to collect the communications of suspected terrorists overseas.

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Republished with permission of The Associated Press.

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Northeast Florida’s manufacturing sector expanded in January, according to a new University of North Florida (UNF) survey.

The UNF Coggin College of Business conducts monthly surveys of First Coast manufacturers to determine production levels and other factors. According to the latest Jacksonville Economic Monitoring Survey (JEMS), there was an uptick for several key elements of manufacturing in Northeast Florida in January compared to November. Researchers did not conduct a survey in December due to the holiday stretch.

New orders for manufacturers in the region, one of the most important elements, ticked up in January, going from an index figure of 52 in November to 56 in January.

Albert Loh, interim dean of the UNF business school who oversees the study, said the increase in new orders bodes well for First Coast manufacturers and signals a strong start to 2025.

“Jacksonville’s New Orders Index of 56 in January signals strong demand growth in the local manufacturing sector. A figure well above 50 indicates that a significant share of surveyed businesses experienced an increase in new orders compared to (November). With new orders being a leading indicator of future output, this expansion points to continued momentum in Jacksonville’s industrial base, particularly in key sectors such as transportation equipment, chemicals, and machinery,” Loh said in the report published Wednesday.

Other elements of manufacturing showed strong economic foundations in January, including expansion among output, output prices, employment, business activity outlook over 12 months, and average input prices.

New export orders, quantity of input purchased and suppliers’ delivery times were unchanged.

There was some contraction in areas of First Coast manufacturing. Backlogs of work dropped in the index, falling from 49 to 48. Finished goods inventory saw an identical drop as well. The inventory of input purchased also contracted, falling from 47 on the index to 45.

Generally, Loh said the Northeast Florida manufacturing picture is on solid footing as 2025 progresses. But there is room for increased growth.

“Challenges remain, particularly with input costs rising (input prices index of 54) and backlogs of work continuing to contract (index of 48), suggesting that manufacturers are fulfilling orders faster than new backlogs are forming. Despite these mixed signals, the fact that Jacksonville’s economy is keeping pace with national trends suggests resilience in the region’s manufacturing base,” Loh said.

“A key bright spot for Jacksonville is its steady supplier delivery performance (index of 50). This stability suggests that local manufacturers are managing supply chains efficiently, avoiding significant bottlenecks.”

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Gov. Ron DeSantis is making sure the Free State of Florida’s reputation stays afloat even off dry land.

DeSantis is touting new “boater freedom” initiatives, which include taking a stand against electric boats in favor of petroleum-powered vessels.

“We do not want to have our boaters to be unnecessarily interfered with by sometimes well-meaning law enforcement, but sometimes it doesn’t work,” DeSantis said at the Miami International Boat Show.

“So today, we are announcing a boater freedom initiative. We want to establish a right to boat in the state of Florida by preempting local regulations that ban the sail or use of boats based on fuel sources. … You don’t need to be driving an electric boat if you don’t want to. You have the ability to do gas and we want to be able to preserve your freedom to be able to do that.”

DeSantis also wants to stop inspections of boats without “probable cause,” which can “lead to further law enforcement action beyond mere safety compliance.”

“If you’re pulled over, there’s got to be a reason,” DeSantis said.

He notes that a false DUI accusation of a boater blowing “a zero breathalyzer” in Jupiter as proof of why that’s necessary.

“We will end this practice by prohibiting the use of safety inspection as a probable cause to pull over the boater,” DeSantis said.

“If you have a reason to do it, if there’s probable cause just like you would do anything, then by all means do it. But people who were just out enjoying themselves when there’s no indication that anything is wrong, they should not be subjected to these intensive searches, and so this is a fair and balanced approach.”

DeSantis also intends to make available a Florida Freedom Boater decal so law-abiding boaters can identify themselves, also helping officers allocate time more effectively.

“By eliminating unwarranted vessel inspections without probable cause, we believe that FWC (Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission) officers can better allocate resources in time to cases where there is a clear need for intervention, protecting our wildlife and ultimately the work that they originally signed up to do,” DeSantis explained.

“This change will help provide better relations between officers and the boating community and will ensure that inspections are conducted based on legitimate concerns rather than arbitrary pick and choose enforcement. This strikes an appropriate balance between ensuring compliance with boating laws and reducing unnecessary disruptions of law-abiding boaters.”

Additionally, the Governor wants a marine fuel tax holiday from Memorial Day Weekend through July 4.

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