Tulsi Gabbard is seeking to assuage senators’ concerns about her in a new opinion piece explaining why she thought "traitor" was too harsh a word for Edward Snowden.

Any one of those resume bullet points might be enough to sink her precariously perched nomination, but in her confirmation hearing today it was Edward Snowden that dominated the discussion. Judging from the line of questioning from senators in both parties,

Gabbard's previous comments about Snowden, responsible for one of the most damaging leaks of sensitive U.S. intelligence, were the focal point of her hearing.