US Senate confirms Trump-nominee Jay Clayton as Director of National Intelligence: Who is he?
The US Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Donald Trump's nominee, Jay Clayton, as the country's Director of Intelligence (DNI), approving his nomination in a 51-47
The US Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Donald Trump's nominee, Jay Clayton, as the country's Director of Intelligence (DNI), approving his nomination in a 51-47 party-line vote despite strong opposition from Democrats over his stance on the 2020 presidential election and concerns about the politicisation of the intelligence community, according to Reuters. Clayton, the former US Attorney for the Southern District of New York and former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), will oversee the country's 18 intelligence agencies. He succeeds Bill Pulte, who had been serving as acting DNI after Tulsi Gabbard stepped down in June. Republicans backed Clayton's nomination, while every Democrat voted against it.
Reservation in Democrats over Clayton The confirmation followed a contentious Senate Intelligence Committee hearing last month during which Clayton repeatedly declined to explicitly acknowledge that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election. Instead, he said Biden had been "certified" as president, had gone through "the processes" and had received the most electoral votes. Democrats argued that his responses raised concerns about whether he would resist political pressure while leading the intelligence community. Clayton also faced scrutiny over subpoenas issued to New York Times journalists during his tenure as Manhattan US Attorney in connection with reporting on security concerns surrounding a Qatari-donated Air Force One aircraft. The Trump administration later said it would withdraw those subpoenas.
His confirmation comes after weeks of political deadlock over the renewal of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a surveillance authority that allows US intelligence agencies to collect electronic communications of foreign nationals outside the United States. Democrats had refused to support the renewal after Trump appointed Bill Pulte, who lacks national security experience, as acting DNI following the postponement of Clayton's original confirmation hearing. Also Read | How the Supreme Court both checks and empowers Donald Trump What Republican House leader said Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he hoped Clayton's confirmation would help break the impasse over reauthorising the surveillance programme, though Senate aides indicated it remained unclear when lawmakers would take up the legislation.
The BriefWire