Kamala’s national security advisor investigated for connections to alleged Iranian spy working in Biden admin: Elise Stefanik, Tom Cotton

Stefanik and Cotton wrote, "We write to express concern about your national security advisor Mr. Philip Gordon’s connections to Ms. Ariane Tabatabai, a senior Department of Defense official who was reportedly involved in an Iranian government operation to expand Tehran’s soft power in the United States."

"During negotiations over the failed Iran nuclear deal, Ms. Tabatabai reportedly was a founding member of the Iran Experts Initiative (IEI), a group of policy analysts in America led by senior Iranian Foreign Ministry officials to propagate Iran’s objectives during the nuclear deal negotiations and bolster Tehran’s reputation," the letter added. Tabatabai was accused of spying for Iran in the US government in 2023.

Gordon co-authored three opinion pieces with Tabatabai prior to joining Harris' office that the letter said "blatantly" promoted the Iranian's interests. In one published in the Washington Post, Gordon as well as Tabatabai were critical of Trump using pressure in the form of sanctions on Iran at the time.

The letter added that "Gordon was also closely associated with the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), another Iranian influence organization that allegedly collaborates with Tehran. He spoke at the NIAC’s Leadership Conference in both 2014 and 2016."

The two members of Congress requested that information about Gordon be submitted to them by August 9 regarding several different topics. Stefanik and Cotten wrote, asking if Harris’ office knew that Gordon had connections with Tabatabai before hiring him as the National Security advisor. They asked, "Did Mr. Gordon undergo security screening and receive a security clearance when you hired him? Does he have an active security clearance?" in addition to other questions.