Senate panel sends Jay Clayton’s intelligence nomination to floor
The Intelligence Committee advanced Trump’s DNI pick 9-8, with Democrats opposing him after a tense confirmation hearing.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
Jay Clayton’s bid to become director of national intelligence is headed to the full Senate after a razor-thin committee vote Tuesday.
The Senate Intelligence Committee advanced Clayton’s nomination 9-8 along party lines, according to committee Chairman Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican. The vote puts President Trump’s pick one step closer to leading the U.S. intelligence community.
Cotton praised Clayton after the vote, calling him “a highly qualified nominee” with experience handling national security threats.
Clayton, identified by CBS News as the former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, was nominated by Trump last month. Some Democrats initially sounded open to supporting him, especially as another Trump choice was poised to serve as acting director of national intelligence.
That early openness faded after Clayton’s confirmation hearing earlier this month.
Democrats balk after 2020 election questions
During the hearing, Democratic senators repeatedly pressed Clayton on the 2020 presidential election, according to CBS News. Clayton acknowledged that former President Joe Biden was certified as president and said he is “not an election denier,” yet he did not directly answer questions about who won the race.
Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, the committee’s Democratic vice chairman, had previously said he hoped Clayton could be confirmed “as quickly as possible.” By Sunday, Warner said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that he would vote no.
“I’ve known Jay for a long time. I like Jay. I worked well with him when he was at the SEC. But I was bitterly disappointed by his performance in front of my committee,” Warner said.
Warner also acknowledged the awkward spot Democrats face because Bill Pulte, a former housing official, is now serving as acting intelligence chief following Tulsi Gabbard’s departure last month.
Pulte’s temporary role adds pressure
CBS News reported that Pulte has no national security background and became known after accusing several of Trump’s political opponents of mortgage fraud. His selection as acting director prompted Democrats to abandon a deal to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a warrantless surveillance authority that expired June 12.
Trump announced Clayton’s nomination shortly before that deadline. Senate Republicans then moved to speed up Clayton’s confirmation in hopes of breaking the stalemate over the surveillance program, according to CBS News.
Days later, Trump urged the Senate to scrap plans to move ahead with Clayton’s nomination when it became clear that confirmation could block Pulte from temporarily taking over the intelligence post, CBS News reported.
Clayton is still expected to win confirmation because Republicans hold the Senate majority. Warner said Democrats are in “a little rock-in-a-hard-place” situation with Pulte currently in the job, while acknowledging that Clayton “will probably get confirmed.”
Warner said he hopes Clayton will be the person he has known and worked with. He sharply criticized Pulte, calling the acting DNI “the absolute disaster we have right now” and saying Pulte has “no intelligence experience” and “nothing but loyalty to Trump.”
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.