Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, listens during a news conference in New York, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
President Donald Trump on Thursday nominated Jay Clayton, a former Securities and Exchange Commission chair, to be director of national intelligence, a move that comes after his plan to install Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting intelligence chief helped derail a crucial spy powers reauthorization.
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The announcement came shortly after the House failed to pass a short-term extension of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act’s Section 702, leaving Congress with no clear plan to keep the surveillance authority from going dark Friday.
“I encourage the United States Senate to confirm Jay as soon as possible,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, praising Clayton as “very Highly Respected” while saying that he is looking forward to welcoming his newest Cabinet member.
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Clayton is the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and served as SEC chair during Trump’s first term. He previously worked at Sullivan & Cromwell, a multinational white-shoe law firm. His background is largely in law, financial regulation and corporate practice, not intelligence.
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This is a developing story and will be updated.
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