As The Washington Post reports,
Coats, who is seen as a traditional Republican, served two stints in the Senate and was ambassador to Germany during George W. Bush's presidency.

The Indiana Republican's most recent term in the Senate ended earlier this week when the 114th Congress concluded. He also served in the chamber from 1989-1999.

The New York Times notes that Mr. Coats is a mild-mannered conservative who served on the Senate Intelligence and Armed Services Committees.

He would be stepping into a position that some in Mr. Trump's orbit believe is superfluous. Mr. Trump has named a more hard-charging conservative, Representative Mike Pompeo, to be his director of central intelligence.

The choice of Mr. Coats comes as Mr. Trump is taking public swipes at American intelligence agencies.