President Trump has nominated Jay Clayton, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to serve as director of national intelligence. The nomination comes after Trump faced widespread criticism for installing Bill Pulte, a controversial ally, as acting director while searching for a permanent candidate.
Clayton currently serves as US attorney for the Southern District of New York. Like Pulte, Clayton has no significant operational experience in any of the 18 intelligence agencies that the directorate coordinates. However, early signs suggest bipartisan support for his appointment. "I encourage the United States Senate to confirm Jay as soon as possible," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Clayton spent most of his career as a Wall Street corporate attorney. During the 2007 and 2008 financial crisis, he played a pivotal role in negotiating major bailouts and rescues, including the sale of Bear Stearns to JPMorgan Chase, Berkshire Hathaway's rescue of Goldman Sachs, and the sale of Lehman Brothers' assets to Barclays Capital.
His Wall Street background raises potential concerns. When nominated to lead the SEC in 2017, some of his previous work came under scrutiny. Clayton represented Ally Financial in a $25 billion settlement over "robo-signing" foreclosure fraud. His defense of Deutsche Bank in a sanctions-evasion case involving Russian oligarchs is likely to receive fresh examination. In the "mirror trades" case, Russian clients used Deutsche Bank to buy dual-listed Russian securities in rubles in Moscow while selling the same securities in dollars or pounds in other markets. New York state regulators settled that case for $425 million.
The nomination triggered calls from Democrats for guarantees about Pulte's future role. Mark Warner, vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, described Clayton as a "capable public servant" but said the Senate needed "a clear guarantee that Mr Pulte will not serve as acting DNI" before moving forward. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer stated flatly: "Pulte has to go. He cannot be in the DNI role. Our national security is too important."
Clayton faces Senate confirmation hearings. If confirmed, he would coordinate intelligence activities across agencies including the CIA, NSA, FBI, and military intelligence branches, as well as brief the president on national security threats.
The nomination comes as Congress struggles with renewing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which allows US intelligence agencies to intercept foreign communications without a court warrant. This powerful surveillance tool was set to expire unless renewed by Congress, but its extension became controversial amid the dispute over Pulte's appointment.