BIOGRAPHY
On December 22, 2020, in recognition of his national security achievements as both Director of National Intelligence and previously as a Member of Congress, the President awarded Director Ratcliffe the National Security Medal, the nation’s highest honor for distinguished achievement in the field of intelligence and national security.
Prior to his nomination and confirmation as DNI, John Ratcliffe served for over five years as the U.S. Representative for the 4th Congressional District of Texas. As a Congressman, Director Ratcliffe was a leading policy maker on national security issues as a member of the House Intelligence, Homeland Security and Judiciary committees.
Director Ratcliffe authored The United States-Israel Advanced Research Partnership Act, signed into law by President Obama on December 16, 2016, which allowed the U.S. and Israel to collaborate on research and development of cybersecurity technologies for national security purposes. The Strengthening State and Local Cyber Crime Fighting Act, authored by Director Ratcliffe and signed into law by President Trump on November 2, 2017, established the National Computer Forensics Institute as a national center for training law enforcement officials on the use of cyber technologies to investigate and secure digital evidence.
Prior to serving in Congress, Director Ratcliffe served in the George W. Bush administration from 2004 to 2008, initially appointed as Chief of Anti-Terrorism and National Security for the Eastern District of Texas before being named the U.S. Attorney from 2007 to 2008.
From 2008 until 2014, Director Ratcliffe was a founding partner with former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft of Ashcroft Sutton Ratcliffe LLP, a firm providing strategic legal advice on national and international security issues.
