President Donald Trump has named Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence, succeeding Tulsi Gabbard who recently announced she plans to resign from the role at the end of June.
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Pulte, a close Trump ally who serves as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, 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,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post Tuesday morning.
While he serves as acting director of national intelligence, Pulte will remain as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency as well as chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Trump wrote.
The director of national intelligence is a Cabinet role that requires Senate confirmation, but naming Pulte in an acting capacity allows the president to bypass that process for now. It was not immediately clear if Pulte will be Trump’s permanent pick for the job.
Pulte has served as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency since March 2025 after being confirmed by the Senate in a 56-43 vote. Three Democrats joined Republicans in supporting his nomination: Sens. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, Ruben Gallego of Arizona and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan.
In his role leading the agency, Pulte has targeted Democrats whom Trump perceives as his political enemies. In March, Pulte made two criminal referrals against New York Attorney General Letitia James, alleging insurance fraud, several months after Trump’s Justice Department failed to prosecute her for a third time. James’ lawyer, Abbe D. Lowell, called the allegations “baseless.”
In May 2025, Pulte sent a criminal referral to the Justice Department for Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., another Democrat against whom Trump has sought retribution. The probe into mortgage fraud allegations against Schiff, which he denied, ultimately stalled.
Democrats in turn have also tried to take action against Pulte. In September 2025, House Democrats asked an inspector general to investigate Pulte over mortgage fraud allegations he made against Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, accusations she has denied.
In November 2025, then-Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., sued Pulte, alleging that he used his position to “concoct fanciful allegations of mortgage fraud” against the congressman, who recently resigned from Congress following sexual misconduct allegations against him, which he also denied.
Pulte was also a driving force behind the controversy that now surrounds the Federal Reserve headquarters renovation, which Trump has suggested has been mired with issues and has necessitated an investigation into former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Two previous reviews by the Fed’s independent inspector general, however, found no wrongdoing associated with the project. During Trump’s surprise tour of the construction site alongside Powell, Pulte was one of the few top allies who attended.
The Justice Department dropped the probe into Powell in April, though U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro left the door open to reopening the case.
