US President-elect Trump appoints attorney general, national security advisor, CIA chief

WASHINGTON -- US President-elect Donald Trump Friday appointed Senator Jeff Sessions for attorney general, Lt.General Michael Flynn as national security advisor and Congressman Mike Pompeo as chief of the Central Intelligence Agency.

"It is an honor to nominate US Senator Jeff Sessions to serve as attorney general of the United States......Jeff is greatly admired by legal scholars and virtually everyone who knows him," Trump said in a statement released on his official website.

"I am pleased that Lieutenant General Michael Flynn will be by my side as we work to defeat radical Islamic terrorism, navigate geopolitical challenges and keep Americans safe at home and abroad," Trump said of his new security advisor, whom he called an "invaluable asset."

"I am proud to nominate Congressman Mike Pompeo as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency......He will be a brilliant and unrelenting leader for our intelligence community to ensure the safety of Americans and our allies," Trump said.

All three men have agreed accept the posts, according to the statement.

Sessions, 69, was a US attorney in Alabama before entering the Senate in 1996. He is considered to be one of the most conservative senators.

Flynn, 57, was one of the most prominent military figures who supported Trump's presidential campaign. He was the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency from 2012 to 2014.

Pompeo, 52, served as a US Representative for Kansas since 2011. He was an early supporter of Trump's presidential bid and a member of the Tea Party movement in Congress.

This is the second time Trump has made collective appointments for officials in his administration, having earlier named Reince Priebus as his chief of staff and Stephen Bannon as his top strategist.

Other important slots yet to be filled including defense secretary and secretary of state, for both of which a number of candidates are being considered by Trump's team.