It was a moment of triumph.
At a rally in Honolulu in 2002, Tulsi Gabbard wore an orchid lei as she celebrated her victory as the youngest-ever member of the Hawaii State Legislature. She had dropped out of community college to run, and Ms. Gabbard, then 21, was embarking on what would become a dizzying political journey from anti-gay conservative to Democratic Party star to a celebrity in President Trump’s world.
Ms. Gabbard, who grew up in a fringe spiritual movement and was a darling of the left during her early years in Congress, has ricocheted across nearly the entire ideological spectrum of American politics, fueling questions about what she stands for and truly believes. Ms. Gabbard, 43, is now the president’s choice to oversee the nation’s 18 spy agencies as the director of national intelligence.
In what is likely to be a rocky confirmation hearing on Thursday, senators from both parties are certain to ask about her trip to Syria in 2017 to meet with Bashar al-Assad, the country’s dictator who has since been deposed. They are also expected to question her parroting of Russian falsehoods about Ukraine and her lack of relevant experience for the job.
In Hawaii, colleagues, friends and critics debate whether the spiritual movement Ms. Gabbard grew up in — the Science of Identity Foundation, a secretive offshoot of the Hare Krishna movement vehemently opposed to same-sex relationships and abortion, and deeply suspicious of Islam — was a motivation for her policy stances. In Washington, some colleagues say she was more influenced by a military deployment to Iraq during one of the most brutal periods of the insurgency. Others attribute her ideological arc to ambition.
No one disputes that Ms. Gabbard is an unorthodox choice for one of the most sensitive roles in government. Her nomination has alarmed national security officials of both parties, and Mr. Trump has privately told allies that hers is the cabinet confirmation he is most worried about.