Senate confirms Ratcliffe as national intelligence chief

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Texas Rep John Ratcliffe as director of national intelligence, installing a new head of the nation's intelligence agencies at a time when President Donald Trump has ousted multiple officials. Ratcliffe seemed unlikely to get the position when he was nominated in February, as he had already been nominated for the job last year and then withdrew after Republicans questioned his experience. But senators warmed to him as they grew concerned about upheaval in the intelligence community under Trump and wanted a permanent, confirmed director.

The Texas Republican will replace Richard Grenell, the current acting director who has overseen many of the personnel changes. The last Senate-confirmed director, former Indiana Sen. Dan Coats, left the post last summer after clashing with Trump. Democrats allowed a quick vote on the nomination this week, dropping their usual procedural delays in a signal that they prefer Ratcliffe over Grenell. But most Democrats still opposed his nomination, making Ratcliffe the first DNI not to win broad bipartisan support since the position was first created in 2005. The vote was 49-44.

Democrats said they were skeptical that Ratcliffe would be an independent leader, despite his assurances during his confirmation hearing. The Republican has been an ardent defender of the president through House impeachment and investigations into Russian interference. Ratcliffe worked to separate himself from the president at his confirmation hearing, including by saying he believed Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, a conclusion Trump has resisted. He said he would communicate to Trump the intelligence community's findings even if he knew Trump disagreed with them and might fire him.

Still, the position carries unique challenges given the president's seeming inclinations to politicize intelligence and to bend intelligence agencies to his will. Trump has openly rejected intelligence community assessments at odds with his own viewpoint, including on the Russian interference. Trump has also shown himself as eager to have intelligence agencies investigate matters that he hopes will support his political positions, with agencies now trying to determine whether the coronavirus pandemic emerged in a laboratory in China or from a market.

In addition, the DNI is encountering ongoing political pressure, including from Republicans in Congress, to declassify and make public information from the Russia investigation that Trump allies hope will cast senior Obama administration officials — including former vice president and 2020 opponent Joe Biden — in a negative light.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)