WATCH: Kelly Confronts DNI Nominee Jay Clayton on Whether He Can Disagree with Trump and Deliver Intelligence Honestly

Kelly: “This job is not about softening the edges when the truth is unpleasant. It’s about delivering information and making sure the president understands that information. And by the way, people risked their lives to get this information.” Kelly: “If you can’t disagree with him when he’s not in the room, are you going to be able to disagree with him when you’re sitting across from him in the Oval Office or the Situation Room?” Today, during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing, Arizona Senator and Navy combat veteran Mark Kelly confronted the nominee for Director of National Intelligence, Jay Clayton, on his refusal to plainly state that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, and if that unwillingness to disagree with President Trump disqualifies him from a job that demands delivering unvarnished analysis and information. To Kelly’s question of why President Biden’s election had been certified, Clayton acknowledged that Biden had “the most electoral votes” and was “declared winner,” but repeatedly refused to plainly state that Biden won. Kelly called out the pattern of Trump nominees who refuse to disagree with the president on the most basic facts: “The reason why we struggle with this, and I think it’s especially important in the job you’re nominated for, is because it seems that folks who are nominated for these positions just fundamentally refuse to disagree with something the president says. And the problem I have with this is he isn’t in the room today. You’re going to be in a room with him many times, and at times you should have a difference of opinion. And if you can’t disagree with him when he’s not in the room, are you going to be able to disagree with him when you’re sitting across from him in the Oval Office or the Situation Room? That’s what I struggle with because this job is different, this job, it’s not about softening the edges when the truth is unpleasant. It’s about delivering information and making sure the president understands that information. And by the way, people risked their lives to get this information. And if it’s not transmitted to the president, if he doesn’t understand it—I mean, there’s going to be disagreements. We expect that. But I really struggle with this, especially in your position, because you can’t disagree with them on this, because he doesn’t like the fact that he lost in 2020. As you said, Joe Biden was certified because he got the most electoral votes. That means he won. But you still refuse to say that.” Sen. Kelly questions Director of National Intelligence Nominee Jay Clayton. Click here to download a video of Kelly’s questions. See the transcript below: Senator Kelly: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Clayton, thank you for being here. I’ve got a couple very basic questions, and then I want to get a little bit of your opinion on the threats we face if we have time. So, can you tell me why Joe Biden was certified as the winner of the 2020 election? Director of National Intelligence Nominee Jay Clayton: I’m going back to my constitutional law here, but I don’t want to continue to have a debate about this. But I believe he had the most electoral votes. Kelly: So, he won the election? Clayton: He followed our process, had the most electoral votes, was declared the winner— Kelly: Who has the most electoral votes? Is it the person that wins or the person that loses? Clayton: I think that’s your characterization. I really, I’m not going to continue— Kelly: The reason why we struggle with this, and I think it’s especially important in the job you’re nominated for, is because it seems that folks who are nominated for these positions just fundamentally refuse to disagree with something the President says. And the problem I have with this is he isn’t in the room, today. You’re going to be in a room with him, many times, and at times you should have a difference of opinion. And if you can’t disagree with him when he’s not in the room, are you going to be able to disagree with him when you’re sitting across from him in the Oval Office or the Situation Room? That’s what I struggle with because this job is different. This job, it’s not about softening the edges when the truth is unpleasant. It’s about delivering information and making sure the President understands that information—and by the way, people risk their lives to get this information. And if it’s not transmitted to the President, if he doesn’t understand it–I mean, there’s going to be disagreements. We expect that. But I really struggle with this, especially in your position, because you can’t disagree with him on this, because he doesn’t like the fact that he lost in 2020. As you said, Joe Biden was certified because he got the most electoral votes. That means he won. But you still refuse to say that. Clayton: And I was sitting at the SEC, when this occurred, and I can tell you that I, maybe people worked harder, but I don’t think anybody I know worked harder to make an effective transition to my successor at the SEC. And in terms of your question, I have every confidence that I will deliver on my job candidly, independently, and with my best judgment. Kelly: But just not in this room? Okay, let me move on. So, I want to just hear from you. What do you think our top threats are that we face as a nation today? Let’s just talk about the top three. Clayton: From where I sit today. Terrorism, from many sources. I believe that we have done a good job of reducing the threat, but drug trafficking and the deaths from fentanyl into the United States were an incredible threat. The combination, I’m not going to speak about any specific illuminating that I’m not going to see at any specific country, but the combination in certain countries of cartels, military, and business is very dangerous. But lastly, I would I would say our traditional adversaries, Senator Kelly, that we’ve talked about. Kelly: Terrorism, drugs, cartels and traditional, I assume you mean Russia, China. Clayton: Russia, China, and Iran. Kelly: With regards to Russia and China, I have about 40 seconds left. You know, what specifically would you do as DNI to help our country deal with those threats? Since we only have 30 seconds just talk to me about Russia and Ukraine. Clayton: Russia, Ukraine, China. One thing that I elaborated before that I think I can be extremely helpful on, is the economic strategies that are involved in our engagement with them across conflict and cooperation. You know, we still cooperate extensively with China on the world stage economically. Kelly: Do you think the economic issue with Russia outweighs the national security risk to our allies? Clayton: I think that they are very closely tied. How do a number of these threat actors fund themselves, its energy, other things. That’s extremely you know, I think you and I talked about this are some of our I would say, most formidable threat actors are the ones who are the most well-funded. Kelly: All right. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.