ND Alum Chosen For Coveted Cabinet Position

Notre Dame alumni John Ratcliffe was appointed to serve as the next Director of the Central Intelligence Agency on November 12. Ratcliffe graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in government and international studies. Since graduating, he has served in a number of public service roles, including as the Director of National Intelligence from May 2020 through January 2021, as well as in private practice. 

Ratcliffe’s most recent role in government was serving as the DNI during the first Trump administration. Before this Ratcliffe served as mayor of Heath, Texas from 2004 to 2012 and represented Texas’ 4th district, which encompasses the Dallas suburbs, from 2015 to 2020. While in Congress, Ratcliffe served on the House Intelligence, Judiciary, and Homeland Security committees.

Ratcliff was widely considered one of the most conservative members of Congress during his tenure and currently is affiliated with the America First Policy Institute, a highly influential center-right think tank.

Ratcliffe gained national attention during Trump’s impeachment in 2020. As an experienced lawyer and respected congressman, he was chosen by the Trump administration to represent them in the proceedings. From the beginning, Ratcliffe took the position that the “impeachment is an assault on due process. It’s an assault on the separation of powers. It’s unconstitutional.” He ultimately proved to play a key role in securing Trump’s acquittal in the U.S. Senate. 

Following the Trump victory after his first impeachment in early 2020, Ratcliffe received a promotion to be the Director of National Intelligence. According to a CNN Politics article, Ratcliffe faced a stiff challenge of having to rebrand himself from an inexperienced partisan to a reasonable and apolitical figure who would act only in the best interest of the nation. This rebranding effort was ultimately successful and swayed moderate senators including Sen. Susan Collins, Maine Republican, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Alaska Republican, to confirm him. 

Later in 2020, Ratcliffe was awarded the National Security Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon officials in intelligence and national security, which began to paint a picture of the Ratcliffe-Trump relationship well before this week’s appointment announcement. 

On the other side of the aisle, many within the intelligence community are relieved that Trump selected a more seasoned official, but, according to an NBC News article, some worry whether he will be willing to act independently and resist establishment pressure. Trump referred to Ratcliffe as “a warrior for Truth and Honesty with the American Public” in his appointment announcement on Truth Social, the Trump-owned social media app. Trump added that “when 51 intelligence officials were lying about Hunter Biden’s laptop, there was one, John Ratcliffe, telling the truth to the American people.” 

Ratcliffe’s tenure at the CIA could mark a turning point on relations with China. In 2020, he wrote, “The intelligence is clear: Beijing intends to dominate the U.S. and the rest of the planet economically, militarily, and technologically.” Given Trump’s similar hawkishness on the issue, the new administration is likely to put increased geopolitical pressure on Beijing.

Before Ratcliffe can take up his new position, he will be subject to approval from the full Senate, but a 53-seat GOP majority is more likely than not to confirm him. Recess appointments could also make this process easier for the Trump appointees to be confirmed. Trump has been promoting the strategy within his circles to ensure that his appointments are confirmed without incident, but a ten day adjournment is difficult to achieve. The ten day adjournment requirement means that if a “pro forma” session is held, the adjournment period has ended and the ten day clock restarts.

Trump’s appointment was met with pride by Notre Dame students, who describe feeling a connection to the appointee. Freshman Matthew Kim said, “It makes me feel proud to be a member of the Fighting Irish and happy to see one of our alumni given such a prestigious position.” 

On a similar note, freshman Rodrigo Osorio felt “surprised by the fact that the ND alumni network is so strong and includes great people like this.” As freshman Luis Galicia said, “It goes to show what hard work can get you.”

Colin Heil is a freshman studying political science. He can be reached at cheil@nd.edu

Photo Credit: NPR

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