WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Thursday to confirm John Ratcliffe as the next CIA director under President Donald Trump, approving the second high-level appointment for the new administration.

Ratcliffe, Trump’s former director of national intelligence, sought to reassure senators that he would remain apolitical in his role as CIA director.

John Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during Trump's first term and is the first person to have held that position and the top post at the CIA.

He has offered a vision for a more aggressive spy agency, and his focus on the threat from China is widely shared by Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

By a 74-25 vote, lawmakers approve a former director of national intelligence accused of politicizing intelligence assessments.

Ratcliffe, the former director of national intelligence in the final months of Trump’s first term, drew controversy over perceived politicization of intelligence assessments.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate confirmed former Texas Congressman John Ratcliffe to serve as the next director of the CIA on Thursday.

The Senate advanced John Ratcliffe’s nomination for Central Intelligence Agency director in a key test vote, effectively guaranteeing he will be confirmed in a final vote later Thursday.

The Senate Intelligence Committee typically holds the confirmation hearings for director of national intelligence nominees ... the Cabinet secretaries are the 15 agency heads who are in the ...

Former CIA analyst Asif Rahman faces 10 years for leaking Top Secret military plans linked to Israel-Iran conflict.