President-elect Donald Trump said former Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Jay Clayton would be his U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, heading up the state's Department of Justice branch.

If confirmed by the Senate, Clayton would lead one of the most important federal prosecutor offices in the country.

President-elect Donald Trump is tapping former regulator Jay Clayton to be US Attorney for Manhattan and two of his own criminal defense attorneys for powerful positions in the Justice Department, fleshing out his top picks to reshape American law enforcement.