The Senate confirmed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton to become the nation’s ninth director of national intelligence Tuesday evening.
And wouldn’t you know it: it was a party-line 51-47 vote with all Democrats voting against him and screeching about how the pick is a direct threat to national security. He takes the job after Tulsi Gabbard resigned to assist her husband, who is suffering from a rare form of bone cancer.
President Trump had appointed Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte to be the Acting Director in June following Gabbard’s departure, and although he only served a little over a month, he left his mark by overseeing five rounds of job cuts at the ODNI.
🚨 BREAKING: Jay Clayton has just been CONFIRMED as President Trump's Director of National Intelligence by the US Senate, 51-47
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 28, 2026
He'll be replacing BILL PULTE who just fired nearly 30% of the DNI office's workforce 🔥
Clayton has been targeting LEAKERS in his previous position,… pic.twitter.com/wM6OZFVwKY
🚨 BREAKING: Jay Clayton has just been CONFIRMED as President Trump's Director of National Intelligence by the US Senate, 51-47
He'll be replacing BILL PULTE who just fired nearly 30% of the DNI office's workforce 🔥
Clayton has been targeting LEAKERS in his previous position, keep it going!
MORE: Pulte's Exit Gift: Fifth Round of Terminations Leaves ODNI Half the Size It Was
More 'Deep State' Firings: Acting DNI Continues to Purge Intel Community
Sen. Adam Schiff’s (D-CA) response was predictable, because it sounded like virtually all his statements. “The sky is falling!” lawmaker posted several media posts blasting Clayton as unprepared and warning that the world is now suddenly “less safe.”
As Senate Republicans move to once again confirm an inexperienced and unqualified nominee to a position of massive national security consequence for years to come, one thing remains clear – this type of politicized leadership will only make Americans less safe.
— Senator Adam Schiff (@SenAdamSchiff) July 28, 2026
My guess is that the only pick Mr. Russia Collusion would fully approve of would be himself, but that is thankfully never going to happen in a Trump administration.
One thing Trump’s quick replacement of Pulte was expected to resolve, however, still faces an uncertain future: the reauthorization of FISA Section 702. The provision gives legal authority for the government — most importantly, the National Security Agency and the FBI — to conduct warrantless surveillance on non‑Americans located outside the country using U.S. communications systems, but the House failed to extend it in June as Democrats raged over Pulte’s appointment.
It doesn’t sound like we’ll immediately see agreement on the Hill, as The Resistance Democrats’ kneejerk response to almost every Trump priority is to oppose it:
…Clayton’s confirmation, for now, does not appear to be breaking through the partisan logjam. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told Fox News Digital that the pressure wasn’t on to reauthorize FISA.
"Democrats have refused to pass a bipartisan FISA bill until a new DNI is confirmed," a spokesperson for Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Tom Cotton, R-Ark., told Fox News Digital. "Now that Jay Clayton is confirmed, it’s time for them to stop playing politics with national security and put up the votes to give our intelligence community the tools it needs to keep this country safe."
Clayton had drawn the ire of Democrats during the hearings when he refused to say outright that Joe Biden won the 2020 election, instead saying “I’m not an election denier” and that Biden had “been certified” the winner. Clayton’s performance was “abysmal,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) fumed.
Regardless of the partisan politics, Trump sees the confirmation as a big win and says Clayton will do a “spectacular job.”
"Congratulations to the Great Jay Clayton on his confirmation by the United States Senate, to be the next Director of National Intelligence. Jay is outstanding in every way, and will do a spectacular job as Director!" - President Donald J. Trump 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/fDD2aVY1eB
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 29, 2026
Editor’s Note: Democrats continue to put our nation's national security at risk simply because they want to keep illegal aliens from being deported.
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