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You are here: Home / White House / Trump’s Choice of Intelligence Chief Rattles Critics

Trump’s Choice of Intelligence Chief Rattles Critics

July 29, 2019 at 3:27 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“For what is supposed to be perhaps the most nonpartisan job in Washington — the director of national intelligence — President Trump has selected one of the fiercest political warriors in the capital,” the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Trump’s choice, Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX), has established himself during his nearly five years in Congress as a tough partisan… A relentless critic of the Russia investigation, Mr. Ratcliffe has shared some of Mr. Trump’s views and earned praise from critics of the so-called deep state of government bureaucrats.”

“Democrats have said he is unqualified and too overtly political, and even some Republicans privately said they thought Mr. Ratcliffe was the wrong choice, according to people familiar with their thinking. Senator Richard M. Burr, Republican of North Carolina and the Senate Intelligence Committee chairman, waited nearly a day to publicly congratulate Mr. Ratcliffe, a subtle sign of discontent with the shake-up. But Republicans on the committee, which will vote on whether to send the nomination to the full Senate, are highly unlikely to buck Mr. Trump.”

Bloomberg: Trump’s polarizing pick for spy chief has tough path in Senate.

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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