Who is John Ratcliffe, the new Director of CIA?

US President Donald Trump has appointed John Ratcliffe as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), marking Ratcliffe’s second high-profile intelligence role under Trump’s leadership.

Ratcliffe, who was sworn in as the 25th CIA Director, is the first person in US history to have held both CIA Director and Director of National Intelligence (DNI) positions. He previously served as DNI during Trump’s first administration, overseeing the nation’s intelligence agencies amid the coronavirus pandemic and concerns over foreign election interference in 2020.

During his tenure as DNI, Ratcliffe accused Iran of attempting to intimidate US voters through targeted emails and faced backlash for declassifying Russian intelligence reports that alleged damaging information about Democrats in the 2016 election—a move critics called politically motivated.


Before entering the intelligence sector, Ratcliffe was elected to Congress in 2014 and became a strong Trump ally, particularly during Trump’s first impeachment trial. He was an outspoken critic, calling the process "the weakest impeachment our country has ever seen."

Ratcliffe’s nomination as DNI in 2019 initially faced strong opposition, leading to his withdrawal within days. However, Trump renominated him in 2020, and he was confirmed by a divided Senate.

His new role as CIA Director will also require Senate confirmation, setting the stage for another high-profile appointment battle.

According to his Wikipedia page, after earning his law degree, Ratcliffe worked as a lawyer in private practice before leaving his firm in 2004 to join the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas. He also served as the mayor of Heath, Texas, for four consecutive two-year terms, holding the position from June 2004 to May 2012.