Trump's DNI fight turns into Senate cliffhanger

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) said that Wednesday's scheduled confirmation for President Trump's director of national intelligence nominee, Jay Clayton, is still on for now — hours after the president claimed it was canceled.

The big picture: Clayton's nomination, which the Senate was aiming to fast-track, has been widely regarded as a way to ease tension between the White House and the upper chamber's Republicans after Trump nominated Bill Pulte as acting intelligence chief.

Driving the news: "We will proceed with his hearing as scheduled unless the president directs him not to appear or withdraws his nomination," Cotton, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's Republican chair, said in a Wednesday X post.

• The hearing for Clayton, who is currently the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, remains scheduled on the committee's website for Wednesday afternoon.

Catch up quick: But early Wednesday morning, Trump posted that Clayton's hearing was canceled and would not be moving forward until his new pick for U.S. attorney, James McDonald, was approved.

• He said that in the meantime, Pulte, who emerged as a key ally for the president atop the Federal Housing Finance Agency, would serve as acting director.
• The White House referred Axios to Trump's Truth Social post about the hearing when asked for comment.

Go deeper: Trump ties FISA renewal to his stalled voting bill