John Ratcliffe
John Lee Ratcliffe is an American politician and attorney who has served as the director of the Central Intelligence Agency since 2025. Ratcliffe served as the director of national intelligence from 2020 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the U.S. representative for Texas's fourth congressional district from 2015 to 2020, as the mayor of Heath, Texas, from 2004 to 2012, and as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Texas from 2007 to 2008.
Standing...
Stories...
Aug 26, 2026
Center
The CIA director visited Moscow for talks with Russian intelligence, the first such visit since 2021.
Renaissance views this as a pragmatic but risky engagement, balancing deterrence with necessary backchannels amid the Ukraine war.
Aug 26, 2026
Lean Left
CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Russian intelligence officials in Moscow, a trip Trump described as 'semi-routine,' but did not meet Putin.
Liberals are wary of Trump's cozy relations with Russia and see this as undermining Western alliances, urging Carney to reinforce ties with Europe.