Reason behind Tulsi Gabbard’s unwillingness to ‘fix’ gray hair revealed amid Cruella de Vil comparisons

WASHINGTON, DC: Tulsi Gabbard’s new role as Director of National Intelligence has once again brought attention back to her signature gray streak of hair that previously caught the internet’s fancy. 

As the 43-year-old war veteran was sworn into her new role by Attorney General Pamela Jo Bondi at The White House on Wednesday, February 12, netizens could not help but marvel at her silver lock of hair in an otherwise dark mane. 

While several social media users found it “questionable” for the new Republican to have a singular streak of grey hair, some netizens even found her hair similar to Cruella de Vil from the Disney movie ‘Cruella’. 

The renewed interest in her hair came more than five years after the combat veteran revealed for the real reason for not dyeing her hair.

Tulsi Gabbard shared a sentimental reason for deciding against coloring her hair

During an interview with NECN in 2019, Gabbard reflected on her decision to show off her gray hair instead of dyeing it in dark colors.

Gabbard, who was previously a member of the Democratic Party, revealed that her experiences as a war veteran inspired her to maintain the natural color of her locks as opposed to dyeing them. 

The youngest state legislator in Hawaii from 2002 to 2004, Gabbard joined the Hawaii Army National Guard in 2003, and served in both Iraq and Kuwait, before rising in the ranks to become a lieutenant colonel. At that time, she was deployed to the Horn of Africa.

Having varied experience on the frontline, Gabbard shared that she first started noticing her gray streak when she was deployed to Iraq in 2004. However, instead of being intimidated by the signs of aging, she chose to keep it as a memorial for the prices one has to pay for war. 

Even though she has long been urged to “fix” her hair, as reported by Daily Mail, the politician has not paid attention to trolls. 

During an interview in 2019, Gabbard explained, “I've chosen to keep it as a daily reminder of the terrible cost of war, who pays the price of war, and the importance of peace.”

She also reflected on journalist Brian Schactman’s observation of her hair where he asked whether it was similar to a birthmark while likening the streak to a character from 'Poltergeist'. 

However, the newly minted DNI clarified, “It's not a birthmark,” before adding, “My generation would say it's more like Rogue from 'X Men' than 'Poltergeist'.”

Rogue is a comic book character from ‘X Men’, who has similar streaks of silver hair, and has been portrayed on-screen by several actresses including Anna Paquin. 

Reflecting on social media questions regarding whether she would be fixing her hair, she firmly stated that there was nothing to be “fixed.”

The former military personnel said, “I don't know what you mean by 'fix'," before adding, “If you mean dye, no, I'm not going to dye it... I'm not going to fix that gray strand.”

Gabbard even emphasized the point when she took to her X account in 2019, to write, "Many ask about the gray streak in my hair. I started to gray in that spot during and after my first deployment to Iraq — and I’ve chosen to keep it as a daily reminder of the terrible cost of war, who pays the price of war, and the importance of peace."

Tulsi Gabbard's gray hair draws comparison to Cruella de Vil

As Gabbard was sworn in on February 12, the social media was abuzz over her gray hair. While a section of users were left flabbergasted by her gray streak, some users were left stunned by her style. 

One of the social media users wrote, "How come Tulsi Gabbard did her hair like Cruella DeVille."

"Is anybody talking about this hair thing that Tulsi Gabbard has going on that makes her look like one of the X- Men?" said someone else. 

Another user noted, "Tulsi Gabbard cosplaying Rogue Hair was not on my list for today.😁."

Someone else noted, "Did anyone ask Tulsi Gabbard if her hair does that two tone stuff naturally?"

"I find it VERY questionable that Tulsi Gabbard has only that single grey streak in her hair. High chance she touches up other grey to make that stand out," noted someone else. 

Another user, meanwhile, declared, "Say what you will about Tulsi Gabbard, but the white streak in her hair makes her an absolute baddie."

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