Trump delays Jay Clayton's DNI confirmation hearing to force vote on voter ID bill

—President Trump pulled Jay Clayton's Senate confirmation hearing for Director of National Intelligence, citing frustration over Congress's failure to pass a voter ID bill (the SAVE Act) and a lapsed surveillance tool (FISA Section 702). Bill Pulte, the current acting DNI, will remain in the role indefinitely. Trump also demanded the Senate confirm Jamie McDonald as the next US Attorney for the Southern District of New York as part of his leverage play. Clayton, the SDNY US attorney who lacks intelligence or national security experience, had been recommended by CIA Director Ratcliffe. The SAVE Act currently lacks enough support for passage, and Senate Republicans had hoped a quick Clayton confirmation would avert a FISA shutdown.