U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended his choice for the next U.S. spy chief as someone who could "rein in" intelligence agencies that "have run amok," fueling concerns Trump seeks assessments that support his own views.
Trump's choice of Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas as the next director of national intelligence, has been greeted with scant enthusiasm by his fellow Republicans and charges by former intelligence officials and Democrats that he is unqualified and will frame intelligence to suit the president.
Ratcliffe, a member of the House Intelligence Committee for six months, would replace Dan Coats, whose judgments on Iran, North Korea and Russia's interference in the 2016 elections clashed with Trump's views, earning the president's disdain.