WASHINGTON: A majority of the U.S. Senate on Thursday backed President Donald Trump’s nominee John Ratcliffe, a former House of Representatives member who served as Director of National Intelligence during Trump’s first term, as director of the CIA.
The Senate voted to confirm Ratcliffe by 74-25, as 20 Democrats and one independent joined Republicans in backing the nomination.
The Republican-led Senate has been working to confirm Trump’s nominees for top positions in his administration as quickly as possible, starting with his national security team.
Trump CIA pick Ratcliffe to face Senate questions on politicized intelligence
Former Republican Senator Marco Rubio was confirmed on Monday, the day of Trump’s inauguration, and Senate leaders scheduled a procedural vote on Trump’s nomination of former Fox News personality Pete Hegseth to be secretary of defense for later on Thursday.
Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee questioned Ratcliffe closely during his nomination hearing last week about whether he would fire or force out employees for their political views or opinions about Trump, who frequently has attacked the the premier U.S. intelligence agency and its assessments.
Ratcliffe vowed not to do so, and the committee backed him by 14-3 at a meeting on Monday, clearing the way for consideration by the full Senate.
Ratcliffe was Director of National Intelligence, the country’s top spy, from May 2020 until Trump left office in January 2021.
Ratcliffe also told his hearing he was confident the U.S. can counter Russia and China, pledged to look into whether U.S. personnel afflicted by “Havana Syndrome” ailments were targeted by an adversary and develop offensive cyber tools.
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