WASHINGTON (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — President Donald Trump says his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running, citing unfair media coverage.

In a tweet Friday, Trump said Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress. Questions about Ratcliffe’s experience have dogged him since Trump announced his candidacy five days ago.

Trump didn’t cite any specific media reports, but tweeted that “rather than going through months of slander and libel,” he would be returning to Capitol Hill.

Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Intelligence experts had criticized his lack of experience in the field of intelligence.

He released the following statement this afternoon:

“While I am and will remain very grateful to the President for his intention to nominate me as Director of National Intelligence, I am withdrawing from consideration. I was humbled and honored that the President put his trust in me to lead our nation’s intelligence operations and remain convinced that when confirmed, I would have done so with the objectivity, fairness and integrity that our intelligence agencies need and deserve. However, I do not wish for a national security and intelligence debate surrounding my confirmation, however untrue, to become a purely political and partisan issue. The country we all love deserves that it be treated as an American issue. Accordingly, I have asked the President to nominate someone other than me for this position.”

Since the withdrawal, Trump said he will announce his other nomination soon.

He accepted the resignation of former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats last week — He is scheduled to leave office Aug. 15. </s> US President Donald Trump has said his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running.

US President Donald Trump has said his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running.

Mr Trump tweeted that Republican representative John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress.

Questions about Mr Ratcliffe’s experience have dogged him since Mr Trump announced his candidacy five days ago.

Mr Trump did not cite any specific media reports, but tweeted that “rather than going through months of slander and libel”, he would be returning to Capitol Hill.

Mr Trump accepted the resignation of former director of national intelligence Dan Coats last week.

Mr Ratcliffe is a frequent defender of Mr Trump who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week.

Intelligence experts had criticised his lack of experience in the field of intelligence.

Mr Ratcliffe said: “While I am and will remain very grateful to the president for his intention to nominate me as director of national intelligence, I am withdrawing from consideration.

“I was humbled and honoured that the president put his trust in me to lead our nation’s intelligence operations and remain convinced that when confirmed, I would have done so with the objectivity, fairness and integrity that our intelligence agencies need and deserve.

“However, I do not wish for a national security and intelligence debate surrounding my confirmation, however untrue, to become a purely political and partisan issue.” </s> Trump Says He Will Not Nominate John Ratcliffe For Director Of National Intelligence

President Trump says the Texas congressman he planned to nominate as the nation's intelligence chief will remain in Congress. Rep. John Ratcliffe was facing criticism for his limited experience. </s> President Donald Trump says his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running, citing unfair media coverage.

In a tweet Friday, Trump said Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress. Questions about Ratcliffe's experience have dogged him since Trump announced his candidacy five days ago.

Trump didn't cite any specific media reports, but tweeted that "rather than going through months of slander and libel," he would be returning to Capitol Hill.

Trump accepted the resignation of former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats last week.

Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Intelligence experts had criticized his lack of experience in the field of intelligence.

In a statement, Ratcliffe said, "While I am and will remain very grateful to the President for his intention to nominate me as Director of National Intelligence, I am withdrawing from consideration."

"I was humbled and honored that the President put his trust in me to lead our nation's intelligence operations and remain convinced that when confirmed, I would have done so with the objectivity, fairness and integrity that our intelligence agencies need and deserve," the statement said.

"However," he added, "I do not wish for a national security and intelligence debate surrounding my confirmation, however untrue, to become a purely political and partisan issue." </s> WASHINGTON (AP) — Trump announces he will nominate Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe to be next director of national intelligence.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed. </s> President Donald Trump says his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running, citing unfair media coverage.

In a tweet Friday, Trump said Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress. Questions about Ratcliffe's experience have dogged him since Trump announced his candidacy five days ago.

Trump didn't cite any specific media reports, but tweeted that "rather than going through months of slander and libel," he would be returning to Capitol Hill.

Trump accepted the resignation of former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats last week.

Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Intelligence experts had criticized his lack of experience in the field of intelligence. </s> US President Donald Trump said on Friday he might name Sue Gordon as acting director of national intelligence after his first choice to lead the agency, congressman John Ratcliffe, decided to drop out.

 

 Speaking to reporters, Trump said he likes Gordon, who is currently the agency’s No. 2 official. Trump also said he is considering a list of three people to lead the agency on a permanent basis and may make an announcement about his choice on Monday. </s> FILE – In this Wednesday, July 24, 2019, file photo, Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas., questions former special counsel Robert Mueller as he testifies before the House Intelligence Committee hearing on his report on Russian election interference, on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Donald Trump says John Ratcliffe, his pick for national intelligence director, to stay in Congress, cites unfair media coverage. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running, citing unfair media coverage.

In a tweet Friday, Trump said Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress. Questions about Ratcliffe’s experience have dogged him since Trump announced his candidacy five days ago.

Trump didn’t cite any specific media reports, but tweeted that “rather than going through months of slander and libel,” he would be returning to Capitol Hill.

Trump accepted the resignation of former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats last week.

Ratcliffe is a frequent Trump defender who fiercely questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week. Intelligence experts had criticized his lack of experience in the field of intelligence.

In a statement, Ratcliffe said, “While I am and will remain very grateful to the President for his intention to nominate me as Director of National Intelligence, I am withdrawing from consideration.”

“I was humbled and honored that the President put his trust in me to lead our nation’s intelligence operations and remain convinced that when confirmed, I would have done so with the objectivity, fairness and integrity that our intelligence agencies need and deserve,” the statement said.

“However,” he added, “I do not wish for a national security and intelligence debate surrounding my confirmation, however untrue, to become a purely political and partisan issue.” </s> (WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump has selected former Indiana Sen. Dan Coats as director of national intelligence, a person with knowledge of the decision said Thursday.

The move comes amid Trump’s questioning of the U.S. intelligence community’s assessments that Russia interfered with the election on his behalf, and one day before the president-elect is briefed by senior intelligence officials on the Russian hacking allegations.

Coats served as a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee before retiring from Congress last year. He also served as U.S. ambassador to Germany.

As director of national intelligence, Coats would oversee an agency created after 9/11 to improve coordination of U.S. spy and law enforcement agencies. The person with knowledge of Trump’s decision was not authorized to discuss the pick publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Trump has been considering ways to restructure intelligence agencies to streamline operations and improve efficiency. Transition officials have been looking at changes at both ODNI and the CIA, but those plans are said not to be aimed at gutting the intelligence agencies or hampering their capabilities.
President Trump announces he will not nominate Representative John Ratcliffe to replace Dan Coats as Director of National Intelligence when he resigns on August 15, and plans to block Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Sue Gordon from serving as acting director.