President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency who has led probes into Trump’s political enemies, would be acting director of national intelligence, the second replacement for the role less than two weeks after Tulsi Gabbard resigned.
Bill Pulte, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, speaks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 9, 2026. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)
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Trump initially appointed Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas to fill her role.
Trump touted Pulte’s “deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America, the safety and soundness of the Markets, and over 10 Trillion Dollars at Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, a substantial increase from where it was just 12 months ago,” on Truth Social, adding Pulte would remain in his role at FHFA while leading ODNI.
Pulte led the controversial campaign accusing Trump’s political foes of mortgage fraud, going after Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, New York Attorney General Letitia James, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to the Department of Justice (all have denied wrongdoing and none have been convicted).
He is the grandson of William J. Pulte, the billionaire founder of the residential building company, PulteGroup, who died in 2018.
Pulte served on the company’s board until 2020 and the family’s official charity, the Pulte Family Charitable Foundation, has distanced itself from him, issuing a statement in 2024 that said Pulte did not represent the family.
That statement appeared to be a response to Pulte’s activity on social media, where he promoted Trump-linked causes and figures and criticized the family foundation over its handling of his grandfather’s legacy.
Gabbard will remain in her role until June 30. She resigned from her role on May 22 to care for her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer, following a tumultuous tenure at the ODNI, including a public break with Trump over the Iran war.
Pulte’s charity sent money to a corporate entity with ties to the law firm that represented Trump in efforts related to his false claims of fraud in the 2020 election, Mother Jones reported recently. The $65,000 donation from Team Pulte to “One World Love LLC” in 2023 raised concerns that Pulte “may have illegally funneled cash out of a charity to support President Trump,” Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., wrote in an April letter to Pulte, seeking additional details about the donation.
Gabbard was the fourth woman in Trump’s cabinet to resign or be fired in less than three months, following Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in March, Attorney General Pam Bondi in April and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer later in April. Gabbard, a former Democrat-turned-independent and presidential candidate who switched parties in October 2024 and endorsed Trump, was broadly opposed to foreign intervention before joining the Trump administration. She also directly criticized Trump, accusing him of antagonizing Iran, during her 2020 campaign for president. She publicly contradicted Trump’s reasons for attacking Iran earlier this year when she told Congress Iran had made “no efforts” to revive its nuclear ambitions ahead of the U.S.-Israel attack in February. Trump told reporters Gabbard was “wrong” and he didn’t “care what she said.” Trump was complimentary of Gabbard when she announced her resignation and the administration has given no indication her departure is linked to any dissatisfaction with the job she’s done.
Tulsi Gabbard Announces Resignation As Director Of National Intelligence—Latest Cabinet Member Out (Forbes)
Housing Official Who Attacked Democrats Invokes a Disputed Family Legacy (New York Times)
He’s Called ‘Little Trump,’ and His Tactics Are Rankling White House Top Brass (Wall Street Journal)
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