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The US Senate confirmed Jay Clayton as Donald Trump’s director of national intelligence on Tuesday in a 51-47 party-line vote.
Clayton assumes leadership of the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies following the resignation of Tulsi Gabbard in May.
His confirmation ends the temporary tenure of acting director Bill Pulte, a staunch Trump loyalist whose rapid staff cutbacks and aggressive political referrals alarmed lawmakers across both parties.
Clayton inherits an intelligence community amid rising political tensions and presidential pressure.
Ahead of the upcoming midterm elections, President Trump has renewed unsupported claims regarding the 2020 election and recently released declassified intelligence to allege Chinese interference.
During confirmation hearings, Democrats pressed Clayton on these claims, but he declined to state directly that Joe Biden won the 2020 election, stating only that Biden was certified as the victor.
This response prompted every Senate Democrat to oppose his confirmation, citing concerns over his independence.
Republicans strongly defended Clayton, citing his prior service as the Securities and Exchange Commission chairman and as the US attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune highlighted Clayton’s track record in prosecuting financial crime and managing national security cases.
GOP leaders hope his confirmation will help resolve stalled negotiations over Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a key foreign surveillance authority that Democrats had resisted extending during Pulte’s temporary leadership
