Legal Af
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Trump Nomination EXPLODES into FULL-BLOWN DISASTER for Trump!!!
Posted
June 19, 2026
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19,780
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June 19, 2026
19,780
2,222
77
11.62%
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17:44
9:56Now PlayingBrian Kabateck and Shant Karnikian discuss when Tulsi Gabbard resigned as Director of National Intelligence citing her husband's cancer diagnosis, President Trump's first instinct was to hand the keys to the entire U.S. intelligence apparatus — all 18 agencies — to Bill Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency with zero national security experience. Pulte had made a name for himself using his FHFA platform to compile opposition research on Trump's perceived enemies, including making criminal referrals targeting Fed official Lisa Cook and New York AG Letitia James over alleged mortgage fraud. The backlash was swift and bipartisan. Even Republicans balked, noting that federal statute requires the DNI to have "extensive national security expertise." With Pulte's appointment threatening to derail the renewal of FISA Section 702 — a critical surveillance tool — Trump pivoted and nominated Jay Clayton, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and former SEC chairman, as permanent DNI. Clayton is a lawyer with a legitimate résumé — he oversaw high-profile prosecutions including the drug trafficking case against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro — but he brings no intelligence community background, no military experience, and no CIA or FBI history to a role that demands all of those things. He bypassed Senate confirmation to become U.S. attorney after Democratic senators blocked his nomination, landing the job when federal judges appointed him instead. He also drew scrutiny for complying with DOJ orders to fire Maureen Comey, James Comey's daughter, and for dropping corruption charges against then-New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Senators moved quickly to schedule a confirmation hearing for June 17, hoping to get Clayton sworn in before Pulte's scheduled June 19 takeover. Then Trump canceled the hearing overnight, using it as leverage to force Senate confirmation of a separate nominee. Pulte remains acting DNI. The episode is a case study in how the administration handles one of the most sensitive jobs in the federal government.
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