Senate Republicans confirmed Trump's intelligence chief despite Democrats' objections over 2020 election stanceJay Clayton, US President Donald Trump's nominee to be Director of National Intelligence, testifies during a Senate Intelligence Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, July 15, 2026. REUTERSJay Clayton was sworn in on Monday as the United States director of national ​intelligence after a contentious Senate confirmation hearing in which he refused to ‌directly acknowledge that President Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election. "The safety and security of the American people ​will be our North Star, and we will work to make ​sure the American people have complete confidence in the IC through proper oversight, transparency, and accountability," Clayton said in a statement released by the Office of ​the Director of National Intelligence. US Senate Republicans last week confirmed Trump's nominee to be the nation's top intelligence ​official, despite opposition ​from Democrats, ⁠who criticised him for repeatedly refusing during the hearing to directly acknowledge Trump's 2020 election loss to ​Democrat Joe Biden. Clayton, who has been ​the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, will oversee 18 US ​intelligence agencies.