Trump picks housing Dir. Bill Pulte as acting intelligence chief, replacing Tulsi Gabbard
President Donald Trump on Tuesday tapped Bill Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as acting director of national intelligence, putting the expansive U.S. intelligence community in the hands of a loyalist who has targeted the president’s foes.
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s current DNI, announced last month that she would resign from the role effective June 30.
Pulte, who has no prior experience in an intelligence role, will keep his existing titles as FHFA director and chairman of the mortgage groups Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post announcing the pick.
Trump had previously announced that Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas would take over as acting DNI after Gabbard left.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for clarification on when Pulte’s tenure at DNI would begin, and whether Lukas would remain in his current role.
“William has 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,” Trump wrote in his Truth Social post.
From his perch atop the normally low-profile housing regulatory agency, Pulte has spurred a firestorm of controversy by raising allegations of mortgage-related wrongdoing against several of Trump’s political opponents.
Pulte last year filed a criminal referral against Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook for mortgage fraud based on Cook allegedly claiming two different properties as her primary residence at the same time.
Trump, who has long urged the Fed to lower interest rates and frequently complains about the central bank’s refusal to act accordingly, attempted to fire Cook based on the mortgage allegations.
Cook sued to stop her firing; her case is currently pending before the Supreme Court.
Pulte also submitted a criminal referral against New York Attorney General Letitia James on allegations of falsifying bank documents and property records in connection with a home mortgage she obtained in 2020.
James was charged in October with bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. In November, a federal judge dismissed her case after ruling that the interim U.S. attorney who brought the indictment, former Trump lawyer Lindsey Halligan, was invalidly appointed.
This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates.
