Newsletter: When the Cult Reaches the Cabinet
Tulsi Gabbard, her guru, and 25,000 pages of evidence
When people think about undue influence, they picture a controlling spouse, demanding pastor, or a parent who trains a child to obey. Few picture the head of American intelligence as an active cult member.
Since childhood, the woman who has led every U.S. intelligence agency has followed Chris Butler, whose group, the Science of Identity, taught its members to treat his word as the word of God. Tulsi Gabbard’s parents raised her inside this authoritarian group.
In June, Washington Post reporter Jon Swaine published an article that resulted from a year of research. The article cited former top insider Rebecca Saltzburg, who shared more than 25,000 pages of emails and memos showing years of guidance on which legislation she introduced, what she said in public, and how she answered questions on television. Swaine compared 32 of Gabbard’s interviews against the memos written for her. In 24, she matched the language almost word-for-word.
In this week’s Substack article for paid subscribers, Was She Ever Free to Choose?, I examine how this group programmed obedience from childhood, why legal adulthood and genuine free choice are not the same thing, and what the Washington Post story left out.
This article can be read here by our paid subscribers, who also have access to my complete catalog of interviews, helpful guides, and thought-provoking articles, such as:
My classic book, Combating Cult Mind Control, is still part of the August Monthly Deal on Audible, so if you want the audio version, now is the perfect time! Also, the Spanish version, Combatiendo el Control Mental de las Sectas, is available on audiobook.
This week’s livestream will take place on Wednesday, August 12th, at 2 pm EDT; I will be answering viewer questions and discussing current events, such as Trump’s precious ballroom getting blocked by the courts, rolling back healthcare, and imposing his own unscientific beliefs about vaccinations on Americans.
If you missed my very popular livestream from last week, please enjoy watching: How Trump’s Malignant Narcissism is Changing America.
On last week’s Friday livestream, Fighting for Justice for Cult Survivors in Australia, I was joined by my guests, ex JW Lara Kaput and ex-Children of God and now psychologist Maria Esguerra, who submitted voluminous evidence to an inquiry in Victoria, Australia, to help survivors of cult abuse get justice and stop cults from concealing the abuse of children and vulnerable members.
We’ll discuss the landmark Victorian Parliament inquiry into how cults and organized fringe groups recruit and harm people, which tabled its report with 98 findings and 39 recommendations.
In this week’s episode of my podcast, Cults, Culture & Coercion, Escaping Shincheonji, Korea’s Covid Cult with Chris Vishoot, I speak with a brave survivor who spent three and a half years inside Shincheonji after being recruited through what looked like an innocent Bible study.
We talk about how he got pulled in during a vulnerable search for meaning, what life was like inside this internationally criticized doomsday cult, and how he broke free and now helps others do the same through his work at Bible Vaccine Center!
Listen on Apple | Spotify | Watch on YouTube
Read my Substack post about the interview here.
Next week, I’ll be speaking with fellow Moonie cult survivor Ingo Michehl about brainwashing, cult recruitment, mind control, cult trauma, cult recovery, authoritarianism, and the importance of independent critical thinking.
I was thrilled to have been invited by Hal Sparks, actor, comedian, and musician known for the series Queer as Folk and for hosting E!'s Talk Soup, onto his podcast MegaWorldWide, a weekly mix of comedy, politics, and personal commentary.
Remember, be sure that you, your neighbors, and everyone you know is registered to vote and ready to do so! We must defeat MAGA in the coming elections!
As always, please let us know what you think about these pieces or what you’d like to see us discuss in the future. Thanks so much!
Excellent human rights article, it really provides an overview of the challenges that need to be addressed.