John Lee Ratcliffe (born October 20, 1965) is an American politician and attorney who served as the Director of National Intelligence from 2020 to 2021. He previously served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 4th district from 2015 to 2020. During his time in Congress, Ratcliffe was regarded as one of the most conservative members. Ratcliffe also served as Mayor of Heath, Texas, from 2004 to 2012 and as acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas from May 2007 to April 2008. President Donald Trump announced on July 28, 2019, that he intended to nominate Ratcliffe to replace Dan Coats as Director of National Intelligence. Ratcliffe withdrew after Republican senators raised concerns about him, former intelligence officials said he might politicize intelligence, and media revealed Ratcliffe's embellishments regarding his prosecutorial experience in terrorism and immigration cases. On February 28, 2020, President Trump announced that he would again nominate Ratcliffe to be Director of National Intelligence, and after Senate approval, he resigned from the House, and was sworn in on May 26. At his confirmation hearing, amid concerns that Ratcliffe would politicize the DNI, Ratcliffe pledged to be apolitical. However, during his tenure as DNI, Ratcliffe was regarded as using the DNI to score political points for Trump. Ratcliffe made public assertions that contradicted the intelligence community's own assessments, and sidelined career officials in the intelligence community. Early life and education Born in Mount Prospect, Illinois, northwest of Chicago, Ratcliffe was the youngest of six children; both of his parents were teachers. He graduated from Carbondale Community High School in Carbondale, Illinois; from the University of Notre Dame in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts in Government and International Studies; and the Southern Methodist University School of Law (now Dedman School of Law) with a Juris Doctor in 1989. Career prior to Congress After graduating from law school, Ratcliffe was a lawyer in private practice. Ratcliffe was elected to four consecutive two-year terms as mayor of Heath, Texas, a city of about 7,000 people, 25 miles east of downtown Dallas. He served in that position from June 2004 to May 2012. Eastern District of Texas In 2004, President George W. Bush appointed Ratcliffe to be the Chief of Anti-Terrorism and National Security for the Eastern District of Texas, within the U.S. Department of Justice. In May 2007, Ratcliffe was named interim U.S. Attorney for the district. Ratcliffe returned