President Donald Trump appointed Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting director of national intelligence on June 2, replacing Tulsi Gabbard and immediately drawing fire from both parties over a federal statute that requires the role be held by someone with “extensive national security expertise.”
Pulte has none. His FHFA biography lists no intelligence experience, and he has never held a national security position. He will serve simultaneously as acting DNI and continue running the FHFA and overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Trump announced the appointment via Truth Social, describing Pulte as having “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.”
The DNI position was created by Congress in 2004 following the September 11 intelligence failures. The law establishing it, 50 U.S. Code § 3023, states explicitly: “Any individual nominated for appointment as Director of National Intelligence shall have extensive national security expertise.”
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Whether the “acting” designation sidesteps that requirement is now in dispute. Under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, the president can install acting officials in many roles without Senate confirmation. Because § 3023’s expertise requirement applies to individuals “nominated for appointment” — language associated with the formal confirmation process — the administration will likely argue it does not bind an acting appointment. Critics contend that reading guts the statute’s purpose entirely.
A Washington Post analysis noted that the Vacancies Act could allow Pulte to remain in the position until January 2027 — nearly eight months — without ever facing a Senate vote.
Pulte built his profile as an attack dog. As FHFA director, he sent criminal referrals to the Justice Department alleging mortgage fraud against New York Attorney General Letitia James, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, Sen. Adam Schiff, and former Rep. Eric Swalwell. All four denied wrongdoing. Only the James case resulted in charges, which a federal judge later dismissed after ruling that the interim US attorney who brought the indictment lacked valid appointment authority. Trump separately cited Pulte’s fraud allegations against Cook to justify his attempted firing of her — a matter currently before the Supreme Court.
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The New York Times reported Pulte’s prosecution push drew internal friction with Justice Department officials.
As acting DNI, Pulte will oversee 18 agencies including the CIA and the National Security Agency, and serve as the principal intelligence adviser to the president and the National Security Council. He will receive and help coordinate the President’s Daily Brief, the government’s most sensitive classified document.
Notably, the appointment drew rare bipartisan criticism.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota told reporters, “We don’t need a weaponized DNI, we need professionals there.” Thune added that if Trump wants Pulte in the role permanently, he faces “a lengthy road ahead of him.”
Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he saw “no evidence of any qualifications for that job.” Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana called Pulte “not very qualified.” Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina also expressed skepticism. All three are leaving the Senate after this year’s elections, which may account for their willingness to speak.
Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he had “no observations on the matter” when asked about Pulte’s national security credentials.
“The concern is not only that Mr. Pulte lacks the ‘extensive national security experience’ required by statute for the job, which was created after intelligence failures led to the deaths of thousands of Americans on 9/11,” Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner of Virginia said. “It is that he appears to have been selected precisely because the White House believes he will provide the narrative it wants, not the intelligence we need.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called Pulte “a partisan thug with no experience in intelligence.” Vice President JD Vance countered on social media, saying Pulte “recognizes that the bureaucracy of the intel community must respond to the elected leadership rather than the other way around.”
Trump had previously announced that Aaron Lukas, the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, would assume the acting DNI role when Gabbard stepped down June 30. He changed course without explanation.
Section (c) of § 3023 bars the sitting DNI from simultaneously heading any other element of the intelligence community. The FHFA is not an intelligence community element, so the prohibition does not technically apply — but Trump’s plan to have Pulte run both agencies simultaneously sits uneasily with a statute that treats the DNI role as structurally exclusive.
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