John Ratcliffe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Ratcliffe
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Official portrait, 2020
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| 9th Director of the Central Intelligence Agency | |
| Assumed office January 23, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Michael Ellis |
| Preceded by | William J. Burns |
| 6th Director of National Intelligence | |
| In office May 26, 2020 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Neil Wiley |
| Preceded by | Dan Coats |
| Succeeded by | Avril Haines |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 4th district |
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| In office January 3, 2015 – May 22, 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Ralph Hall |
| Succeeded by | Pat Fallon |
| Mayor of the City of Heath | |
| In office June 14, 2004 – May 14, 2012 |
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| Preceded by | Chris Cuny |
| Succeeded by | Lorne Liechty |
| United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas | |
| Acting May 21, 2007 – April 29, 2008 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Matthew D. Orwig |
| Succeeded by | Rebecca Gregory |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
John Lee Ratcliffe
October 20, 1965 Mount Prospect, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Michele Addington |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | |
John Lee Ratcliffe (born October 20, 1965) is an American politician and lawyer. He has held several important roles in the U.S. government. Since January 2025, he has been the ninth director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Before that, he served as the sixth director of national intelligence from 2020 to 2021. He was also a member of the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2020.
After finishing law school, Ratcliffe worked as a private lawyer. He was the mayor of Heath, Texas, from 2004 to 2012. He also served as the acting United States attorney for the Eastern District of Texas from May 2007 to April 2008. In 2014, Ratcliffe was elected to the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 4th district. He served there until 2020.
During his time in Congress, Ratcliffe was known for his conservative views. In 2019, President Donald Trump announced his plan to nominate Ratcliffe for director of national intelligence. However, Ratcliffe later withdrew his name. On February 28, 2020, Trump nominated him again for the same role. After being approved by the Senate, Ratcliffe became the director of national intelligence on May 26, 2020. On November 12, 2024, President-elect Trump announced he would nominate Ratcliffe to lead the CIA. The Senate confirmed him on January 23, 2025, and he took office that day.
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Early Life and Education
John Ratcliffe was born in Mount Prospect, Illinois, a town near Chicago. He was the youngest of six children. Both of his parents were teachers.
He graduated from Carbondale Community High School in Carbondale, Illinois. In 1987, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in government and international studies from the University of Notre Dame. He then went on to get his law degree, a Juris Doctor, from Southern Methodist University School of Law (now Dedman School of Law) in 1989.
Career Highlights
After law school, Ratcliffe worked as a lawyer in private practice. In 2004, he joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
Ratcliffe was elected mayor of Heath, Texas, four times. Heath is a city with about 7,000 people, located east of Dallas. He served as mayor from June 2004 to May 2012.
Work as a Federal Prosecutor
In 2004, President George W. Bush appointed Ratcliffe to a leadership role. He became the chief of anti-terrorism and national security for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. This office is part of the U.S. Department of Justice.
In May 2007, Ratcliffe was named the interim U.S. attorney for the district. He returned to private law practice in April 2008. This happened after Rebecca Gregory was confirmed as the permanent U.S. attorney for the district.
Law and Political Transition Work
In 2009, Ratcliffe became a partner in a law firm with former attorney general John Ashcroft. The firm was called Ashcroft, Sutton, Ratcliffe.
In 2012, Ratcliffe was part of a team that helped prepare for a possible presidential transition. This team was set up by Republican candidate Mitt Romney before the general election. Their job was to review people who might be appointed to government positions.
U.S. House of Representatives (2015-2020)
Election to Congress
In late 2013, John Ratcliffe announced he would run for Congress. He challenged the long-serving Republican congressman Ralph Hall in the 4th district. Hall was 91 years old and the oldest member of Congress at the time.
Ratcliffe received support from various groups. He won the primary runoff election against Hall with 53 percent of the vote. This was a notable victory, as it was the first time in 20 years a sitting Republican congressman in Texas lost a primary. In the November 2014 general election, Ratcliffe ran unopposed and won the seat.
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Re-election Campaigns
In 2016, Ratcliffe easily won his Republican primary. He received 68 percent of the vote. Again, no Democrat ran against him in the general election. He defeated a third-party candidate with 88% of the vote.
In 2018, Ratcliffe was re-elected for his third term. He won with nearly 76 percent of the vote. He defeated Democratic challenger Catherine Krantz and Libertarian challenger Ken Ashby.
Time in Congress
When Ratcliffe took office on January 3, 2015, he became only the fifth person to represent the 4th District since 1903. Most of his predecessors had held the seat for at least 25 years.
In Congress, Ratcliffe was a member of the Republican Study Committee. He also belonged to the Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus. In late 2018, he was considered for the role of attorney general by the Trump Administration.
Committee Roles
During his time in Congress, Ratcliffe served on several important committees. These included the Judiciary Committee and the Homeland Security Committee.
He also chaired subcommittees related to cybersecurity and infrastructure protection. In the Judiciary Committee, he was involved in subcommittees dealing with crime, terrorism, and intellectual property.
Role in Impeachment Proceedings
On January 20, 2020, the Trump administration named Ratcliffe as part of its impeachment defense team. This was before the Senate impeachment trial. Ratcliffe worked with the White House to prepare arguments and legal documents. He was chosen for his legal background and his effectiveness during the impeachment process in the House.
Director of National Intelligence (2020–2021)
Nomination and Confirmation
On July 28, 2019, President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Ratcliffe as director of national intelligence. This role leads the entire U.S. intelligence community.
Ratcliffe's nomination was discussed widely. Some people questioned his experience in national security. On August 2, 2019, Trump withdrew Ratcliffe's name from consideration.
However, on February 28, 2020, President Trump again announced Ratcliffe as his nominee for director of national intelligence. The U.S. Select Senate Committee on Intelligence held hearings on May 5, 2020. The committee later voted to approve his nomination on May 19, 2020. The Senate confirmed Ratcliffe on May 21, 2020, by a vote of 49 to 44. He resigned from the House on May 22 and was sworn into his new role on May 26.
Time as DNI
During his time as Director of National Intelligence, Ratcliffe focused on certain issues. He often spoke about the threats posed by China's intelligence efforts. He warned that China aimed to become a global leader in many areas.
2020 U.S. Presidential Election
Ratcliffe made statements regarding the 2020 U.S. presidential election. He stated that there was no intelligence supporting claims that certain information about Joe Biden came from the Kremlin.
He also declassified information related to the 2016 election. This information suggested a scheme to link Donald Trump with Russia. Ratcliffe noted that the intelligence community did not know how accurate this information was.
On October 21, 2020, threatening emails were sent to Democrats in several states. Ratcliffe announced that evening that Iran had sent these emails. He stated that Iran and Russia had obtained American voter registration data. He said this data could be used to spread false information and cause confusion.
Post-Administration (2021–2025)
After leaving the Trump administration, Ratcliffe became a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation. In this role, he worked on policy recommendations for intelligence reform. He also focused on issues related to China and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ratcliffe was a contributor to Project 2025. He also served as Co-Chair for the Center for American Security at the America First Policy Institute. He held this position from April 2021 until December 2024. In 2024, Ratcliffe was a special guest speaker for fundraising events for the Trump Vance Campaign.
Director of the CIA (2025–Present)
Nomination and Confirmation
In November 2024, Donald Trump nominated Ratcliffe to be the next director of the CIA. Ratcliffe appeared before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on January 15, 2025. During the hearing, he promised to keep the agency politically neutral. He also pledged to prevent political biases from affecting the agency's work.
Trump formally nominated Ratcliffe on January 20, 2025. The Senate Intelligence Committee approved his nomination. The Senate confirmed him on January 23, 2025, by a vote of 74–25. This made him the second member to be confirmed in the Second cabinet of Donald Trump.
Tenure
Ratcliffe was sworn in by Vice President JD Vance on January 23, 2025. On January 25, the CIA updated its assessment of the origin of COVID-19. They changed their previous "undecided" estimate to "low confidence" in favor of a laboratory leak in Wuhan. In early February, the CIA offered buyouts to employees. This allowed them to resign voluntarily.
In early February, the CIA followed an Executive Order from Trump. They sent the White House an unclassified email. This email identified the first names and last initials of all employees hired in the previous two years.
Signal Group Chat Incident
From March 11 to 15, 2025, a group of U.S. national security leaders used a Signal messaging chat. They discussed upcoming military operations against the Houthis in Yemen. The chat included 19 members, including Ratcliffe.
The chat became public when National Security Advisor Mike Waltz accidentally added Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor of The Atlantic magazine, to the group. The name of an active undercover female CIA officer was mentioned by Ratcliffe in the chat. Ratcliffe stated that Signal was approved for the group chat.
On March 26, a government watchdog group, American Oversight, filed a lawsuit. They sued several individuals, including John Ratcliffe. The lawsuit claimed they did not follow rules about preserving government records. A judge issued a temporary order to preserve all Signal messages from March 11–15.
Political Views
Ratcliffe is known for his conservative political views. In 2016, The Heritage Foundation ranked him as one of the most conservative legislators in Congress.
China
Ratcliffe has often stated that China is a major threat to U.S. interests. In December 2020, he said China aims to be dominant globally. He called China "the greatest threat to America today." He also claimed the Chinese government conducted human testing on its military. This was reportedly to develop soldiers with enhanced abilities.
He also called for China to lose the right to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. He cited what he called "crimes of humanity against Uyghur Muslims." He also mentioned a "massive cover up" of the COVID-19 virus's origins.
Immigration
Ratcliffe supported President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order. This order aimed to limit immigration from certain countries. Ratcliffe stated he supported actions to increase the review of refugees entering the U.S.
Term Limits
When he first ran for Congress, Ratcliffe made term limits a key part of his campaign. Term limits mean that politicians can only serve for a certain number of years.
Cybersecurity
Ratcliffe was chairman of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection. This was during the 115th Congress (2017–19).
In March 2014, Ratcliffe led a congressional hearing. It focused on how the private sector and the Department of Homeland Security could work together better. The goal was to prevent terrorist activity. He also helped pass two laws related to cybersecurity. These were the "United States-Israel Advanced Research Partnership Act of 2016" and the "Strengthening State and Local Cyber Crime Fighting Act of 2017."
Net Neutrality
In December 2017, Ratcliffe signed a letter from Congress. This letter supported a plan to end net neutrality. Net neutrality rules aimed to keep internet service providers from blocking or slowing down certain websites.
Russia Probe
Ratcliffe has supported Trump's views on investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. He has stated he saw no evidence that Russian interference helped Trump get elected in 2016. He also described surveillance of the Trump campaign as "spying."
Days before he was announced as Trump's choice for Director of National Intelligence, Ratcliffe questioned Robert Mueller. Mueller led the special counsel investigation into Russian interference. Ratcliffe argued that Mueller's report went beyond its scope by discussing potential obstruction of justice without charging crimes.
Ratcliffe also stated that the Steele dossier was not the start of the Trump-Russia probe. He said that information about George Papadopoulos began the FBI investigation in July 2016.
Personal Life
John Ratcliffe and his wife, Michele, live in Heath, Texas. They have two daughters. Ratcliffe is a Roman Catholic.
See also
In Spanish: John Ratcliffe para niños
- Final Report of the Task Force on Combating Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel
