Topline
President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he wants to pause former SEC Chair Jay Clayton’s nomination as the Director of National Intelligence until the Senate confirms his pick to replace Clayton at the Manhattan US Attorney’s office and also reiterated that he will not approve the renewal of a key federal surveillance law until Congress approves voter ID legislation.
Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, listens during a news conference in New York.
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Key Facts
In a lengthy post on Truth Social, the president wrote that he is “canceling” the Senate Hearing for Clayton on Wednesday, adding that it will not go forward until his pick, Jamie McDonald, is approved to take over from Clayton as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
The president added that Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte, a Trump loyalist who has targeted the president’s enemies, will remain acting director of national intelligence despite his appointment facing bipartisan pushback.
In his post, Trump complained that the nomination of Clayton was moving “so fast” that his interim pick Pulte would be gon before Democrats get to vote on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), whose authorization expired last week.
Democrats have said they will not approve a FISA renewal until Trump withdraws Pulte’s appointment as acting DNI.
This is a developing story.