‘Promise you won’t interfere in midterms like Tulsi Gabbard?’: Warner grills DNI nominee Clayton

Sen. Mark Warner sharply questioned DNI nominee Jay Clayton over foreign election interference, pressing him to promise the intelligence community would not influence the 2026 midterms. Warner also referenced past findings on Russian interference in the 2016 election and warned against using intelligence agencies for domestic politics. Clayton declined to discuss specific matters but emphasized that the intelligence community's mission is to address foreign threats while lawmakers debated election security, foreign influence, and the role of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.