Democrats and Republicans in Congress worried that Gabbard might leak information to Syria

In the spring of 2018, congressional staffers were anxious ahead of the House Foreign Affairs Committee meeting. A Syrian defector who had risked his life to expose atrocities committed by the Assad regime was due to appear behind closed doors at a private briefing for lawmakers. No cameras would be present, but congressional aides worried about one committee member, Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who had repeatedly defended the Syrian regime and even met its leader, Bashar al-Assad, in an unannounced trip in 2017. The aides were concerned Gabbard might leak the name of the defector, who had hidden his identity…