Democrat sparks fury for claiming Trump's pick for intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard is a 'likely Russian asset'

Debbie Wasserman Schultz triggered anger Friday from supporters of Tulsi Gabbard after proclaiming her as a 'likely Russian asset.'

Gabbard, a former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii, was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to serve as the Director of National Intelligence, after she bucked her party as a 'bunch of warmongers' and became a Republican.

Wasserman Schultz, a Florida Democratic Congresswoman, appeared on MSNBC to condemn Trump's pick as a danger to national security.

'She is considered to be essentially by most assessments a Russian asset,' Wasserman Schultz said in the interview. 

Wasserman Schultz was sharply critical of Gabbard's 2017 meeting with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, as she defied the State Department who advised her not to do so.

When asked if she believed that Gabbard was a Russian asset, Wasserman Schultz agreed.

"Oh yes, there's no question I consider her someone who is likely a Russian asset,' she said.

Wasserman Schultz even posited that if Gabbard was confirmed to the position of Director of National Intelligence, she would, 'hold all of our most significant intelligence secrets and essentially would be a direct line to our enemies.'

Gabbard has a lot of history with Wasserman Schultz, who was the Democratic National Chair in 2016. Gabbard defied the establishment in her party by resigning her position as DNC co-chair in February 2016 to endorse Sen. Bernie Sanders for president instead of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Supporters of Gabbard were furious by Wasserman Schultz's claim, reminding the congresswoman that Gabbard served in the United States military.

Gabbard served in the U.S. military for over two decades and was deployed to Iraq as part of a media unit. 

'Imagine fighting for your country and then having pro-war cretins like this impugn your loyalties,' journalist Glenn Greenwald wrote on social media.

 'This is pure defamation and it should not go unanswered,' wrote podcaster Ian Miles Cheong.

Debbie Wasserman-Schulz claims that Tulsi Gabbard is a Russian asset,' wrote Steve Gruber on social media. 'Wasn't Debbie Wasserman-Schulz's personal aide outed as a Pakistani intelligence operative!'

In 2017, Imran Awan, an aide for Wasserman Schultz was arrested trying to leave the country, accused of attempting to defraud the Congressional Federal Credit Union.

He ultimately pleaded guilty to an unrelated charge of making false statements on a loan application.