On Tuesday Republican senators approved President Donald Trump's selection of Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton to serve as the country's chief intelligence official even though Democrats opposed the move after a stormy hearing.

Clayton takes over a post left open in June when Tulsi Gabbard resigned following repeated clashes with congressional Democrats who charged her with pushing Trump's agenda and repeating false claims about elections.

The final tally stood at 51 to 47 along strict party lines with Republicans supporting the nominee and Democrats rejecting him.

The dispute over Gabbard and election statements gained fresh attention after Clayton avoided directly confirming during his hearing that Trump lost the 2020 race to Joe Biden.

With midterm elections only three months away Trump has pushed election security as a major topic even though studies show voter fraud remains uncommon.

Democrats say Trump is using the topic to question any future victories by their party.

Stormy Hearing

Clayton's session earlier this month grew heated at points as he told Democratic senators he was not someone who denied election results yet he would only note that Biden was certified as president completed the required steps or received the most electoral votes rather than saying Biden won six years earlier.

Clayton also answered questions from Democrats about his choice to subpoena New York Times reporters to appear before a grand jury following their stories on security issues with the new Air Force One aircraft donated by Qatar.

A prosecutor stated last week at a court session that the administration would drop the subpoenas after a judge questioned the probe closely.

Clayton's path to confirmation faced problems even before the July 15 hearing. In mid June Trump suddenly delayed the first scheduled hearing in an attempt to pressure Congress into changing voting laws.

Senators including Republican intelligence committee chair Tom Cotton of Arkansas initially expected the hearing to proceed but later confirmed Clayton would not appear after Trump directed him to skip it.

Questions About Acting Director Pulte

The postponement upset Democrats because Trump had installed Federal Housing Finance Agency head Bill Pulte a Trump loyalist without national security experience as temporary DNI. Pulte has carried out multiple staff reductions in intelligence offices since taking the interim role in June.

Because of the dispute Democrats withheld support needed to extend foreign surveillance authority under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act used to monitor overseas targets.

Aides indicated no timeline exists for renewing Section 702 even after Clayton's confirmation. Republicans hold a 53 to 47 majority and require at least seven Democratic votes to reach the 60 vote threshold for passage.

Clayton age 60 previously worked as a lawyer at Sullivan and Cromwell focusing on mergers and fundraising. In Trump's first term he led the Securities and Exchange Commission where he earned a reputation as a moderate seeking agreement with Democratic members.

Trump nominated him in April 2025 as interim US Attorney for the Southern District of New York one of the nation's most influential prosecutorial positions.

His biography lists no prior intelligence work and limited national security background which is normally required for the DNI role. Supporters including some Democrats before the hearing controversies argued his experience as Manhattan US attorney provided sufficient national security exposure to meet the standard.