OAN Staff Abril Elfi
10:17 AM – Saturday, August 30, 2025
Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard has criticized MSNBC host Jen Psaki, accusing her of harboring “hatred of God.”
On Friday, Gabbard released a statement on X following Psaki’s comments in the wake of the Minneapolis Catholic school shooting.
In her post, Joe Biden’s former White House press secretary slammed people for offering thoughts and prayers in response to the tragedy.
“Prayer is not freaking enough. Prayers does not end school shootings. prayers do not make parents feel safe sending their kids to school. Prayer does not bring these kids back. Enough with the thoughts and prayers,” she said.
Gabbard issued a lengthy response, stating that “God is love” and it is normal to lean on him in times of darkness.
“God is love. The very essence of God is love. Therefore, during times of hardship, sadness, pain and suffering, we naturally and spontaneously take refuge in Him — in love itself — because we know in the core of our hearts that it is only the power and light of God’s love that can drive away the darkness of evil and hatred, which was manifested so tragically and violently upon the children praying in Minneapolis on Wednesday,” she wrote.
Gabbard went on to criticize Psaki, calling her and other critics of prayer “agents of darkness.”
“So why is it that people like Jen Psaki and others have such a spontaneous visceral negative reaction to those who are praying to God for refuge, strength, and for the wellbeing of the victims of this heinous attack? Because they do not believe in God or His love,” Gabbard stated.
“Their response is rooted in their hatred of God,” Gabbard added. “They want to be God, so they view Him as their competitor. They are agents of darkness and hatred, and the light of God’s love is a threat to their dark ambitions.”
She concluded by stating that “It is especially during times like this, when the darkness of hate descends upon us, that we take shelter in and manifest the light of God, which is love.”
“Rev Martin Luther King spoke the truth beautifully when he said, ‘Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.’”
Vice President JD Vance also came after Psaki’s statement, stating that people “pray because their hearts are broken.”
“We pray because our hearts are broken. We pray because we know God listens. We pray because we know that God works in mysterious ways, and can inspire us to further action,” Vance said, adding, “Why do you feel the need to attack other people for praying when kids were just killed praying?”
In a follow-up post, Vance wrote, “Of all the weird left-wing culture wars in the last few years, this is by far the most bizarre. ‘How dare you pray for innocent people in the midst of tragedy?!’ What are you even talking about?”
During a press conference, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt slammed Psaki as well.
“I saw the comments of my predecessor, Jen Psaki, I think they’re incredibly insensitive and disrespectful to the tens of millions of Americans of faith across this country who believe in the power of prayer,” she said.
Two children, 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel and 10-year-old Harper Moyski, were fatally shot during the Catholic students’ 8:15 a.m. Mass on Wednesday. Additionally, 19 others were injured during the incident.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news alerts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts
What do YOU think? Click here to jump to the comments!Sponsored Content Below