President Donald Trump’s pick to run the nation’s intelligence agencies is one step closer to clinching the job, and puts the Senate ever-closer to jump-starting a key counter-terrorism tool in the process.

The Senate advanced Jay Clayton through a key hurdle Monday night to be the next Director of National Intelligence (DNI). It comes after former DNI Tulsi Gabbard’s sudden exit from the position to care for her cancer-stricken husband.

The largely partisan vote to move Clayton, who formerly chaired the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) during Trump’s first term, comes after he narrowly squeaked out the Senate Intelligence Committee on a 9 to 8 vote.

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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., challenged Democrats to support Clayton during the broader, final vote, but expected them to resist as they have with several other Trump nominees through his second term.

«One might think that we’d be seeing some bipartisanship from Democrats on this nominee,» Thune said. «But Democrats are playing the same partisan games with this qualified nominee as they have for so many of President Trump’s picks.»

«It’s a funny thing because Democrats have made no secret of their disdain for the current acting Director of … National intelligence,» he continued. «In fact, Democrats were so worked up over the president’s temporary choice for this position, they allowed our nation’s most important counterterrorism tool to go dark for the first time ever.»

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The Senate will now vote on confirmation Tuesday, putting an end cap on an arduous process to replace Gabbard. When she announced her exit from the position, Trump hastily installed Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte to lead the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies in the interim.

That came as the Senate was nearing a vote on a bipartisan deal to keep the nation’s top counter-terrorism tool, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), running ahead of its expiration.

But Democrats, who railed against Pulte and accused him of being an unqualified loyalist who would weaponize the intelligence community against the president’s enemies and try to dismantle it, walked away from the deal after Trump torpedoed Clayton’s previously scheduled confirmation hearing.

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Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte attends a kick-off celebration for the «Great American State Fair» on the National Mall in Washington, DC, June 24, 2026. (Jemal COUNTESS / AFP via Getty Images)

Less than 24 hours before Clayton’s penultimate test, Pulte announced on X that he had completed his fourth round of layoffs as DNI.

«Since becoming Acting Director of National Intelligence, our team has been smartly, and carefully, reducing the size of ODNI, re-focusing ODNI on national security, the law, and the statute,» Pulte said. «As of this evening, we just finished a 4th round of thoughtful, measured layoffs. Thank you!»

The Section 702 program has since been steadily going dark, with new authorizations caught in a legal void until lawmakers reauthorize the program that has been used to thwart deadly terror attacks, including halting a mass-casualty terror plot at a Taylor Swift show in Vienna, Austria.

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Last week, only Republicans on the panel voted Clayton out of committee after he failed to satisfy Senate Democrats’ questioning on who won the 2020 election, his knowledge of Gabbard’s raid on the Fulton County, Georgia election offices, and subpoenas against New York Times reporters that his were submitted by him in his role as the top prosecutor in New York’s Southern District.

Those subpoenas were voluntarily withdrawn by the Department of Justice last week, two days after Clayton was confirmed by the panel.

France’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva launched a verbal attack against the U.S. following a contentious vote to give U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk another four-year term, accusing Washington of abandoning its role as a global human rights leader.

«The US used to be a beacon of human rights. Not anymore,» the official French mission account posted on X Saturday. «Today, it stands alongside North Korea, Nicaragua, Mali & Russia, isolated. And the world no longer listens to it.»

The mission added the hashtag «#AmericaAlone.»

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U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz fired back, accusing France of using the attack to distract from its support for Türk.

«It is disappointing — though not surprising — that this is how France deflects on its shameful vote to coddle some of the worst human rights abusers,» Waltz wrote on X. «France voted for someone who has been lecturing free, sovereign democracies like the United States, the UK, and Israel, while cozying up to the world’s worst oppressors.»

During the vote by Ambassador Jeff Bartos, the U.S. representative for U.N. management and reform, declared that the U.N. human rights system «has been losing credibility for decades.»

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Ambassador Michael Waltz testifies during a House Foreign Affairs hearing on the United Nations in the Rayburn House Office Building on July 22, 2026. (CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

«Mr. Türk has guided it to its deathbed,» Bartos said. «And if you vote to reappoint Volker Türk for a four-year term, it will kick the bucket.»

Bartos accused Türk of disproportionately condemning democracies while failing to respond adequately to abuses committed by authoritarian governments.

He said Türk had criticized the United States, Britain, France, Australia, Italy and, more than any other country, Israel. Bartos also accused Türk of remaining silent for 12 days after the Iranian government allegedly began a new wave of violence against its citizens, while quickly condemning U.S. military action against Iran.

Bartos further criticized Türk’s office for calling on Washington to lift sanctions on Cuba, maintaining what he called a discriminatory database targeting American companies and enabling the U.N.’s «anti-Israel machinery.»

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U.N. Human Rights Council President Jurg Lauber, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk stand for a minute of silence honoring victims of human rights violations, at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on Feb. 24, 2025. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images)

France’s U.N. Ambassador Jérôme Bonnafont offered a sharply different assessment during the General Assembly debate, saying Türk had demonstrated «rigor and impartiality» during a first term marked by growing attacks on multilateral institutions and the universality of human rights.

«He has been a voice of conscience, confronting states with reality and their responsibilities,» Bonnafont said.

An official familiar with the U.S. position told Fox News Digital on background that American officials were surprised by France’s «brazen» public attack and rejected the suggestion that opposing one U.N. official’s reappointment amounted to opposing human rights.

The official said Washington and other delegations were also caught off guard by the expedited vote because Türk’s current term does not expire until Oct. 11.

The United States sought to postpone consideration for one week to allow additional consultations, but member states rejected the request. The General Assembly then approved Türk’s reappointment by a vote of 144-10, with 13 abstentions, extending his tenure from Oct. 12, 2026, through Oct. 11, 2030.

The assembly also rejected a Russian proposal to extend Türk’s term only through the end of 2026, which would have allowed the next U.N. secretary-general to participate in selecting the human rights chief.

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France’s Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, right, greets Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Cernay-la-Ville outside Paris, France, Friday, March 27, 2026. (Michel Euler/AP Photo)

France’s post grouped Washington with authoritarian governments that also opposed Türk, but did not address whether those countries voted against his reappointment for the same reasons. The U.S. said its opposition reflected both concerns about Türk’s record and objections to the accelerated process.

UN Watch, a Geneva-based watchdog, published a 2024 analysis of public statements initiated by Türk or his office between Oct. 17, 2022, and Oct. 31, 2024.

The organization concluded that Türk criticized the United States more frequently than China, North Korea, Cuba, Saudi Arabia and Qatar combined. It also said it found no self-initiated criticism during that period concerning abuses by Cuba, North Korea, Algeria, Eritrea, Mauritania, Lebanon or Qatar.

UN Watch’s methodology excluded statements required by the Human Rights Council, comments in mandated reports, broad updates to the council and other remarks that were not initiated at Türk’s discretion. Its findings therefore do not encompass every country reference, report or action by Türk’s office.

UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer called the renewal «rushed and unprecedented» and said it was «unseemly» for French President Emmanuel Macron’s government to attack the United States while celebrating Türk’s reappointment.

Nile Gardiner, director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation, responded more bluntly.

«Perhaps show some gratitude instead?» Gardiner wrote on X. «The French owe their very existence as a sovereign nation to The United States.»

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FrenchPresident Emmanuel Macron and President Donald Trump. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Türk’s supporters argue that his willingness to criticize powerful democracies is part of his responsibility to apply human rights standards universally. France and the European Union maintained that he had performed his duties objectively and that Secretary-General António Guterres acted within the rules allowing a high commissioner to serve a second four-year term.

Türk is set to become the first U.N. human rights chief to serve two complete four-year terms since the position was established in 1993.

El aumento de la demanda de atención por trastornos del neurodesarrollo en Santiago ha llevado a una transformación en la dinámica de los servicios de salud mental infantil y adolescente.

En los últimos cinco años, la Unidad de Psicología Especializada (UPSE) de la Clínica Corominas ha duplicado el número de pacientes, lo que refleja una mayor conciencia social y una búsqueda activa de ayuda profesional por parte de las familias.

Actualmente, la UPSE programa cerca de 132 citas diarias, con un 70 % destinadas a niños y adolescentes. La agenda de los sábados permanece llena desde las 8:00 hasta las 15:00. Según la neuropsicóloga clínica Saray Espinal Gómez, fundadora de la unidad, predominan los casos de trastorno por déficit de atención e hiperactividad (TDAH), trastornos del espectro autista (TEA), dificultades de aprendizaje y alteraciones conductuales. Este panorama ha sido detallado recientemente por Listín Diario al analizar la situación en la provincia.

El entorno escolar es el principal punto de detección, ya que los docentes suelen ser quienes observan las primeras señales de dificultades en el aprendizaje, la atención o la socialización. Espinal Gómez señala que “la mayoría de los niños vienen referidos por las escuelas”, aunque cada vez más padres, al comparar el desarrollo de sus hijos, deciden buscar ayuda de manera preventiva.

Los menores que llegan a consulta normalmente tienen entre 3 y 12 años. Todavía se reciben adolescentes de hasta 14 años que no fueron diagnosticados a tiempo y presentan problemas de habla, aprendizaje o síntomas de autismo no identificados previamente.

En cada caso, la UPSE realiza una evaluación científica antes de iniciar cualquier tratamiento. El diagnóstico permite diseñar un plan integral que puede incluir terapias conductuales, del habla, ocupacionales, estimulación temprana, terapia familiar o rehabilitación cognitiva.

El acompañamiento emocional a los padres es el primer paso tras el diagnóstico. Espinal Gómez enfatiza que “un diagnóstico no limita el futuro de un niño, sino que nos da las herramientas para potenciar sus capacidades”. La colaboración entre el consultorio, la familia y el colegio, junto a rutinas claras en el hogar, es fundamental para el éxito terapéutico.

La especialista destaca la urgencia de fortalecer la detección temprana desde el sector médico, en especial entre pediatras: “Debemos seguir trabajando con los pediatras para que hagan más referencias tempranas; mientras más rápido evaluemos a un niño, mayores serán sus oportunidades”, precisó a Listín Diario.

Al llegar a la adolescencia, las consultas cambian de foco y se concentran en la salud emocional, con la ansiedad, la depresión y los trastornos de la conducta en primer plano. Muchos de estos casos están relacionados con conflictos familiares, dificultades de adaptación y acoso escolar.

Espinal Gómez advierte que “muchas familias llegan pensando que el adolescente tiene depresión, pero al profundizar descubrimos que ha sido víctima de bullying durante mucho tiempo”.

La aparición temprana del consumo de sustancias como marihuana, vapeadores y alcohol agrava los cuadros de ansiedad y afecta el desarrollo cerebral en esta etapa.

En la clínica, es frecuente ver a madres solteras y abuelas tomando la responsabilidad principal en el proceso terapéutico y logístico de los menores. Espinal Gómez reconoce que “vemos a muchas mujeres haciendo el rol de madre y padre al mismo tiempo, realizando un trabajo extraordinario para sostener las terapias y la crianza”. Además, observa una tendencia positiva con más padres participando activamente en consultas y reuniones escolares.

Los signos de alerta más frecuentes incluyen retrasos en el habla, cambios abruptos de conducta y dificultades para socializar. Una intervención oportuna y la detección precoz son claves para transformar las perspectivas de desarrollo de los niños con trastornos del neurodesarrollo.

Un diagnóstico temprano permite acceder a recursos y estrategias que favorecen el crecimiento y la integración plena.