President Donald Trump nominated Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to be the next permanent director of national intelligence on Thursday. A veteran Trump administration official, Clayton is seen as a more conventional choice for the role compared to the president’s earlier choice made last week.
“Few people anywhere in the Legal Community are respected at the level of Jay,” Trump said Thursday in a Truth Social post announcing his pick. “I encourage the United States Senate to confirm Jay as soon as possible.”
The position opened up after Tulsi Gabbard resigned on May 22, citing her husband’s cancer diagnosis as the reason for her June 30 departure.
Clayton’s nomination follows the political backlash that erupted after Trump named Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting director of national intelligence. That choice spurred bipartisan criticism from lawmakers who noted Pulte’s lack of intelligence experience.
WATCH: What to know about Trump’s controversial pick of Bill Pulte for acting spy chief
Watch the PBS News Hour segment in the player above.
Unlike other Cabinet positions, federal statute requires the president to appoint someone with “extensive national security expertise” to the position.
“Mr. Pulte has none of that,” Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, told PBS News on Wednesday.
WATCH: Pulte unqualified for DNI role, but FISA must be extended, Rep. McCaul says
On Wednesday, Trump asked Congress for a short extension of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act’s Section 702, a key tool for collecting foreign intelligence that is set to expire on Friday. Members of Congress said they would refuse to renew it unless he pulled Pulte’s name.
Clayton’s nomination is unlikely to stop the section from expiring. The House rejected a short-term extension on Thursday before going on recess.
WATCH: Surveillance program set to expire as Congress rejects FISA extension
Nor does the new nomination mean that Trump’s interim pick, Pulte, is out of the picture. Despite the criticism, Trump has doubled down on his decision, saying that Pulte’s appointment is temporary, and that while he is in the role, the president wants him to slash the office’s staffing.
Here’s what to know about Clayton.
Clayton oversaw Maduro’s indictment and Epstein files’ review
Clayton has been serving as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York since April 2025, when Trump announced his appointment in an interim position to bypass the Senate confirmation process. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., had said he would block Clayton’s nomination.
As Clayton took on the position, three prosecutors who were involved in investigating a corruption case against then-New York City Mayor Eric Adams resigned. The case was dismissed.
In August, Clayton assumed the post permanently after federal judges approved his position.
“I am honored to continue serving the people of New York together with the talented and hardworking women and men of the Office,” Clayton said in a statement at the time.
Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York speaks during a news conference at the New York Police Department headquarters following the arrest of suspects charged with igniting IEDs near Gracie Mansion, the home of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, in New York City, on March 9, 2026. File photo by Brendan McDermid/ Reuters
The Southern District of New York is known as the largest and most prestigious of the Justice Department’s prosecution offices, overseeing cases related to fraud, narco-terrorsim and corruption.
The post gives people “some exposure to national security issues, but not that much,” said former chair of the National Intelligence Council, Gregory Treverton. “So he comes into the job without much experience, either in national security or, more specifically, intelligence.”
As U.S. attorney, Clayton signed and oversaw the Justice Department’s indictment of Venezuela’s former leader Nicolás Maduro on drug trafficking charges. Maduro has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Clayton’s office was also responsible for reviewing many of the Justice Department’s files related to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after Congress passed a law requiring their release.
Former Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in November that Clayton would investigate Epstein’s connection to prominent Democrats under Trump’s directive.
Bondi described Clayton as “one of the most capable and trusted prosecutors in the country.”
Before becoming U.S. attorney, Clayton served as chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first term in office. His office filed charges against Elon Musk for distributing misleading information about securing funding for Tesla.
Clayton also sought to crackdown on cryptocurrency, filing charges against companies that issued unregistered crypto tokens.
Clayton spent much of his career as a corporate attorney in the private sector.
Clayton described California’s voting laws as providing ‘opportunity for fraud’
In an interview Monday on CNBC, Clayton said the U.S. is “doing an absolutely terrible job” on election integrity, “and the American people are right to question it.”
Speaking about California’s election laws allowing any registered voter to cast a ballot by mail, leading to a drawn-out vote count, Clayton claimed “it makes the opportunity for fraud so much greater when that is not necessary.”
Clayton’s comments echo Trump’s baseless claims that California’s elections are rigged. There’s no evidence of voter fraud in California’s primary elections.
WATCH: Former election official fact-checks Trump’s claims of election fraud in California
Watch the PBS News Hour segment in the player above.
Clayton’s predecessor, outgoing national intelligence director Gabbard, was present during an FBI search of an election office in Fulton County, Georgia, in February. The agency searched and seized records related to the 2020 election, which Trump has falsely said was rife with fraud. Gabbard told lawmakers that she went to Georgia at Trump’s request.
Reactions to Clayton
Clayton’s future as director of national intelligence is contingent on Senate confirmation. Republicans in Congress celebrated his nomination and called for his swift approval.
“Outstanding choice by President Trump to nominate Jay Clayton to be the new Director of National Intelligence,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in a statement on X. “He has real-world experience, the complete confidence of the President and has performed every task in the public and private sectors in an exemplary manner.”
Democrats weren’t as quick to cheer on the pick, and turned their focus back to Pulte.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., described Clayton as “a capable public servant,” but Warner said his position on extending FISA would not change before he has “a clear guarantee that Mr. Pulte will not serve as acting DNI.”
Watch the clip in the player above.
Before naming Clayton, Trump said in a Truth Social post Wednesday that Pulte would take over the role on June 19.
A day later, after the Clayton announcement, Trump confirmed to a reporter that Pulte would still take on the interim role.
“He’s intelligent, unlike a lot of other people,” Trump said. “He’s only there for a little while. He’s running it for a short while, while we get a very talented person, Jay Clayton.”
