Aug 1 (Reuters) – Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte posted on Saturday that the transition for Jay Clayton to take over the job will take place on Monday.
U.S. Senate Republicans confirmed Clayton’s nomination this week to be the nation’s top spy despite opposition from Democrats following an angry confirmation hearing.
Pulte wrote in a social media post on Saturday that “the DNI transition will take place this coming Monday.”
Clayton, who has been the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, will oversee 18 U.S. intelligence agencies.
He steps into a role that was vacated in June when Tulsi Gabbard stepped down after a tenure marked by clashes with congressional Democrats, who accused her of advancing U.S. President Donald Trump’s political agenda and promoting debunked election claims.
Democrats during Clayton’s confirmation hearings criticized him for repeatedly refusing during his testimony to directly acknowledge that Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden.
Pulte, who is also Trump’s Federal Housing Finance Agency director, ordered layoffs of intelligence staff after he assumed the interim intelligence position in June.
His appointment drew criticism from the Democrats for his lack of national security expertise.
(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya in Toronto; Editing by Mark Porter and Sergio Non)
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