James Clapper, Director of National Intelligence, Resigns

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper told the House Select Committee on Intelligence Thursday he had submitted his letter of resignation on Wednesday night.

"(I) submitted my letter of resignation last night, which felt pretty good," Clapper said before the committee. "I have 64 days left and I'd have a pretty hard time with my wife going past that."

Appointed members of any administration must submit their resignation as the final term comes to a close.

"He signed his letter as required by all appointed administration officials but is finishing out his term," said a spokesperson from the Office of Director National Intelligence.

Clapper's resignation comes as President-elect Donald Trump attempts to assemble a national security team as former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers abruptly resigned on Tuesday from the transition team after being assigned to lead the national security efforts. Sources close to Rogers — the former chair of the House Intelligence Committee who was expected by many to become the new director of the Central Intelligence Agency — said he had been the victim of a "Stalinesque purge."

On Thursday, Clapper said that after working in the military and intelligence world for 50 years, he has never seen the range of threats the U.S. faces as it does today.

"Our nation is facing the most diverse array of threats that I've seen," he told the committee Thursday.

He added: "I will leave this job concerned about the impact of so-called lone wolves and homegrown violent extremism. "That is a very complex problem."

Clapper has authority over 17 governmental agencies, including the CIA, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the FBI.

More than 107,000 employees report to him with a combined budget of more than $52 billion.

Photo credit: Office of the Director of National Intelligence via Flickr Commons