Trump Nominates Former SEC Chair to Serve as US Attorney for Southern District of New York

Jay Clayton, former chairman of the SEC, speaks during the 13D Monitor's Active-Passive Investor Summit in New York City, on Oct. 18, 2022. Brendan McDermid/Reuters

President-elect Donald Trump said on Nov. 14 that he is nominating former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Jay Clayton to serve as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

“Jay is going to be a strong Fighter for the Truth as we, Make America Great Again,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Clayton served as chairman of the SEC during Trump’s first term.

Trump said Clayton did an “incredible job” at the commission, which he led from 2017 to 2020.

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York has led some of the most high profile prosecutions in the country, including recent cases against rapper Sean Combs and New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

Trump sought to appoint Clayton to the role during his first term but encountered pushback from Geoffrey Berman, who was holding the position at the time.

“I told the Attorney General that I knew and liked Jay Clayton but he was an unqualified choice for U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York because he was never an [assistant U.S. attorney] and had no criminal experience,” Berman later told the House Judiciary Committee. Berman was eventually fired.

In June 2020, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on Clayton to withdraw his name from consideration and accused the Trump administration of using Clayton to interfere with investigations in the district. Berman’s office investigated former Trump attorneys Michael Cohen and Rudy Giuliani.

Clayton has a long career that includes serving as a clerk for Judge Marvin Katz of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, as well as advising private companies. He currently serves as senior policy advisor at Sullivan & Cromwell LLP and is an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, where he obtained his law degree.

“Jay is a highly respected business leader, counsel, and public servant,” Trump said.

On the social media platform X, retired Sen. Pat Toomey said Clayton “has the experience and integrity to be an outstanding U.S Attorney.”