on august 2, 2019, trump said in a tweet that he was withdrawing ratcliffe's name from nomination, claiming that mainstream media scrutiny of ratcliffe (though using the "lamestream" pejorative in the actual message) was unfair, and would result in "months of slander and libel," while white house sources said that trump had become concerned about ratcliffe's chances for confirmation, following feedback from some republican senators. speaking to reporters later that day, trump insisted the press had treated ratcliffe unfairly, but he also stated that he liked the way the press vetted his nominees, saying "you vet for me." in his formal statement withdrawing from consideration, ratcliffe said, "i do not wish for a national security and intelligence debate surrounding my confirmation, however untrue, to become a purely political and partisan issue. the country we all love deserves that it be treated as an american issue. accordingly, i have asked the president to nominate someone other than me for this position.”