Doug Collins says he won’t be intel chief after Trump floats him for DNI job - POLITICO

Rep. Doug Collins. | Alex Wong/Getty Images

Rep. Doug Collins quickly shot down speculation that he would be nominated as the next director of national intelligence after President Donald Trump floated the Georgia Republican for the role of America’s spy chief, insisting Friday that he would instead continue his campaign for Senate.

“Wow, you know, it is humbling. I mean, it’s amazing for a trooper’s kid from north Georgia to have the president think that much of you — to mention my name among others to be this position,” Collins told Fox Business, hours after Trump revealed Thursday night to reporters on Air Force One that he was considering the congressman for the post.

“But let me just tell you right now that I know the problems in our intelligence community, but this is not a job that interests me at this time,” Collins added. “It’s not one that I would accept because I’m running a Senate race down here in Georgia.”

Collins’ dismissal of the president’s suggestion comes after the White House on Wednesday tapped Richard Grenell, the U.S. ambassador to Germany and a staunch Trump loyalist, to take over for outgoing acting national intelligence director Joseph Maguire.

Trump’s decision to elevate Grenell, who has not served in any U.S. intelligence agency, has alarmed critics who fear the president is seeking to politicize one of the most sensitive offices in the federal government and bend the intelligence community to his will.

The president’s proposal to install Collins as national intelligence director on a permanent basis was also likely to have elicited significant criticism — especially given that it is not the first time Trump has explored choosing a fierce congressional ally for the job.

Trump previously nominated Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) to become national intelligence director in July, but Ratcliffe withdrew himself from consideration just five days later in the face of heavy scrutiny.

Ratcliffe previously served as the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, but had minimal experience in the intelligence community beyond his six-month tenure on the House Intelligence Committee. Both Ratcliffe and Collins were vocal defenders of the president amid former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation and the House impeachment proceedings.

Collins is now waging a campaign against appointed Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler to complete the term of former Sen. Johnny Isakson, who resigned last year — bucking the wishes of Georgia’s Republican governor and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, but invigorating supporters of the president who view him as a more sincere Trump devotee.

“I’m very humbled by the president. I’m a supporter of this president. I’m going to continue to fight for this president in the House this year,” Collins said Friday. “And we’ll be in the Senate next year because this intelligence community has to get right. And I’m sure the president will pick somebody appropriate for that job.”

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