The Senate on Thursday confirmed John Ratcliffe to lead the Central Intelligence Agency in overwhelming bipartisan fashion, making him the second member of President Trump’s national security team to be approved by the Upper Chamber.
Senators confirmed Ratcliffe in a 74-25 vote. Twenty-one members who voted with Democrats Caucus with every current Republican. Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) did not vote.
“He will bring valuable knowledge and experience to his new post,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-D) said at the committee earlier this week. “Mr. Ratcliffe brings the right experience and approach to the CIA, and I look forward to working with him in his new position.”
Ratcliffe’s nomination resolved the Senate Intelligence Committee By a vote of 14 to 3. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the panel’s vice chairman, was among Ratcliffe’s supporters.
However, Republicans were unable to process it as quickly as they had hoped. Thune hoped to confirm him by Tuesday evening or Wednesday, but Democrats threw up a last-minute roadblock to further delay Pete Hegseth’s confirmation to the Pentagon.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) blocked his quick passage, pointing to “serious concerns” that some of his Democratic colleagues had about Ratcliffe and questions about his willingness to distance himself from the president’s political interests while serving as DNI in 2020 served.
“I don’t think it’s too much to ask to ensure that we have a full, real debate lasting two days on the Senate floor,” he said Tuesday.
Despite Murphy’s delay, Ratcliffe was largely able to defeat a number of Democrats on multiple fronts, with members viewing him as a sedate candidate given his time as DNI and his national security background.
During his confirmation hearingHe specifically told Democrats that he would keep the CIA apolitical and would not fire agency employees based on political leanings or opposition to the president.
He has also received bipartisan high marks for his stance on China, having been a long-time supporter of combating the Chinese Communist Party – an issue that emerged during his confirmation hearing last week.
“Understand that the nation that wins the race of today’s emerging technologies will dominate the world of tomorrow,” Ratcliffe said at the time. “This makes me want the CIA to continue and boost intensity to focus on the threats from China and its ruling Chinese Communist Party. As DNI, I dramatically increased the intelligence community’s resources dedicated to China. “
Ratcliffe has warned that China is the biggest threat to the US since World War II and has called for aggressive spying by the world power.
The vote comes after Chamber confirmed unanimously Secretary of State Marco Rubio, officially establishing half of Trump’s first national security team. Thune said Senate Republicans plan to move the other half “in the coming days.”
Thune is expected to move in quick order, Kristi Noem (R) and Pete Hegseth, the head of the Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon, respectively.
No one is expected to be an easier lift than Hegseth, who will have to rely on Republican votes to get through due to Democratic opposition. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Advanced Noems nomination in a 13-2 vote Monday.
Despite early difficulties that consumed Hegseth’s nomination last year, he has stayed the ship with Republicans and is expected to ultimately win confirmation despite Democratic attempts to delay a vote.
“If each of President Trump’s nominees were as qualified and experienced as Sen. Rubio, they will sail through the Senate with bipartisan support. “Unfortunately, too many of the president’s nominees don’t agree with Senator Rubio,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on the floor.
“Too many have disturbing backgrounds. Too many appear unprepared for the job and demonstrated this during testimony,” Schumer said, although he did not name any candidate individually.
Ratcliffe has a number of issues on his plate post-confirmation, some of which were presented in the confirmation hearings during last week’s confirmation hearing. He spoke to strengthen the agency’s intelligence gathering capability and his support for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Act, which allows non-custodial surveillance of foreign targets.
The former Texas congressman also announced plans to “download” the causes of abnormal health events (AHIs) – also known as “Havana syndrome” – afterward a couple of us intelligence agencies signals that they may have been caused by foreign adversaries.
The AHIs have affected hundreds of us spies, diplomats and other personnel, and the intelligence community as a whole has found no links between them and any foreign power.
The CIA in particular has been criticized for its response to employees who have reported AHI symptoms. A current one Senate Intelligence Committee Report The agency addressed the matter, saying the agency was complicating employees’ abilities to receive medical care and compensation.
“I share your frustration that four years later we are very much in the same place trying to make an assessment and determination on the cause,” Ratcliffe told Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). “I share your frustration at not being able to understand why, but if he is confirmed and given the opportunity to be informed of all assessments and intelligence, my promise to you is that I will look into this issue carefully and I’ll look around with this topic and work with them to see. ”
Rebecca Beitsch contributed.
