Trump's pick for director of national security faces Senate confirmation hearing

+ Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Trump's pick for director of national security faces Senate confirmation hearing The Senate Intelligence Committee is set to consider the nomination of Jay Clayton to be the next director of national security. Politics Trump's pick for director of national security faces Senate confirmation hearing June 17, 20264:42 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition Eric McDaniel Trump's pick for director of national security faces Senate confirmation hearing Listen &middot; 1:58 1:58 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5860704/nx-s1-9813498" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript The Senate Intelligence Committee is set to consider the nomination of Jay Clayton to be the next director of national security. Sponsor Message LEILA FADEL, HOST: President Trump's pick to serve as the director of national intelligence was set to appear before senators this afternoon to start the confirmation process. The role oversees 18 intelligence agencies. President Trump wrote early this morning that the congressional hearing for Jay Clayton is canceled. Clayton is a federal prosecutor, and Trump now wants Clayton's successor confirmed first. While Clayton waits in the wings, here's NPR congressional reporter Eric McDaniel.

+ ERIC MCDANIEL, BYLINE: The first thing to know is this is a man who's worn a lot of hats. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) JAY CLAYTON: I'm Jay Clayton, United States attorney for the Southern District of New York. MCDANIEL: As the top prosecutor there, he's overseen some major cases, including the arrest and ongoing prosecution of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. Clayton's been a prominent private sector attorney, and during Trump's first term - well, I'll let the president say it. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Jay Clayton is the head of the SEC -Securities and Exchange Commission - and he's done a fantastic job. MCDANIEL: He's not without controversies, though. He echoed some of the president's election conspiracies ahead of his nomination in a recent CNBC interview, talking about California's slow vote counting. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) CLAYTON: On the integrity side, we're doing an absolutely terrible job, and the American people are right to question it. MCDANIEL: Clayton went on to clarify he wasn't claiming there is fraud, but that, quote, "the opportunity for fraud makes no sense to me when we can make a much better system." Still, he's been well received by Senate Intelligence Committee Democrats like Mark Warner of Virginia, who said in a statement, quote, "I've known and respected Jay Clayton for many years and believe he is a capable public servant." Clayton may be benefiting here from comparison. Outgoing DNI Tulsi Gabbard has had her fair share of controversies before and during her time in the job. And Democrats fear Trump's acting pick - partisan attack dog Bill Pulte, who has no intel experience - will weaponize the U.S. intelligence apparatus to assail the president's perceived foes. Eric McDaniel, NPR News, the Capitol. (SOUNDBITE OF SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE SONG, "HOLD BUT LET GO") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{309:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(81)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(770),o(154),o(175),o(93),o(448),o(253),o(128),o(130),o(755),o(174),o(756),o(254),o(77),o(774)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},783:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(309)}},[[783,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();