Georgia Rep. Doug Collins is one of the people President Trump is considering to permanently fill the position of director of national intelligence.
During a flight on Air Force One late Thursday, Trump told reporters that he is considering the Republican congressman after it was revealed that his latest pick for acting director, Richard Grenell, would not fill the position permanently.
Collins, the outgoing ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, was one of Trump’s closest allies in the House throughout the impeachment process. He will soon have to leave his leadership positions after announcing that he would be running for U.S. Senate in Georgia against the Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler.
Collins told Fox Business on Friday morning that he would not accept the nomination for the position if Trump were to make a formal offer. He explained the decision to anchor Maria Bartiromo, saying, “This is not a job that interests me, at this time it’s not one that I would accept because I’m running a Senate race down here in Georgia.”
The director of national intelligence, sometimes referred to as the spy chief, is a Cabinet position for the individual that oversees the intelligence community. Grenell, who was the U.S. ambassador to Germany, is the first openly gay individual to serve in the president’s Cabinet.
Trump has not made his final decision as to who will fill the opening left when Dan Coats vacated the position. Joseph Maguire had been the acting director of national security for the past several months.
