Raising alarms on the Hill

Trump’s intel pick delights MAGA and shocks nation’s spies

Bill Pulte, the head of a housing agency, is set to take the reins as the Director of National Intelligence — raising alarms on the Hill even as it delights the MAGA faithful.

By Daniella Cheslow

With the naming of Bill Pulte to serve as acting Director of National Intelligence today, President Donald Trump offered a stick in the eye to the intelligence community and cause for celebration to his base.

“It’s a middle finger to the Senate. A fuck you to the Deep State,” MAGA loyalist Steve Bannon told POLITICO. “The White House staff hates him because they can’t control him.”

Given his scant national security credentials — and initial GOP skepticism — Pulte faces an unlikely path to confirmation in the Senate should he be nominated formally for the role. But even his ascension in an acting capacity sends a strong signal about Trump’s disdain for the office — and MAGA’s mistrust of the intel community.

For some longtime intelligence community practitioners, it was a galling move that underscored Bannon’s point. “It will cause worry amongst IC professionals that the DNI will be fully weaponized in support of going after Trump’s political enemies, given Pulte’s track record,” said Marc Polymeropoulos, a retired 26-year veteran of the CIA.

Pulte, who is serving as Federal Housing Finance Agency director, has no known background in intelligence. His appointment came less than two weeks after Tulsi Gabbard said she’ll leave her post as DNI at the end of June. The 1998 Vacancies Act allows for an acting officer to serve for 210 days, although the White House and ODNI didn’t confirm the length of Pulte’s term or when it would begin.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett defended the choice, saying, “Bill Pulte is a terrific guy, very careful person, very much in the details of things, trusted by the president and a really, really close friend to everybody in the White House. He’ll do a great job.”

Democrats offered wall-to-wall condemnation of the appointment. The news hijacked an afternoon Senate Intelligence Committee hearing, with ranking member Mark Warner (D-Va.) asking “What qualifications from my standpoint does Mr. Pulte bring to the office? Well, he has shown that he is willing to do anything that President Trump wants, legal or otherwise.”

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told reporters in the Senate that Pulte had already wielded government power against Trump critics (those include Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif), New York Attorney General Letitia James and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook). “With more access to more private information, Pulte may simply use that to do more damage to more American citizens,” Warren said.

Republicans — particularly those whose time in the Senate is running out — were cautious, if not downright skeptical, reinforcing the idea that Pulte has long odds of being confirmed.

“I don’t see any evidence of his qualifications for that job but I’m willing to listen,” said Senate Intelligence Committee member John Cornyn (R-Texas), just weeks after he lost a primary to a Trump-backed candidate.

“Doesn’t seem very qualified,” said Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who likewise fell victim to Trump’s primary revenge tour.

“I thought most of his experience was in the building industry. I didn’t know he had any national security experience,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who is retiring.

It wasn’t just the YOLO caucus. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Pulte would have a “lengthy road ahead” to a potential Senate confirmation. North Carolina GOP Sen. Tedd Budd called Pulte “an interesting choice, there’s a lot of talented people that I probably would have considered.”

Trump loyalist Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) was more supportive, saying, “I think Bill’s great,” but declined to elaborate on his qualifications.

The ODNI was founded after 9/11 to integrate intelligence across 18 agencies. Squabbles between ODNI and the CIA have broken open during the Trump administration, including when Gabbard revealed an undercover CIA agent in a list of 37 officers she stripped of security clearances.

“ODNI and other IC elements it oversees communicate and collaborate daily with CIA counterparts across the full spectrum of intelligence products and operations,” the ODNI told POLITICO.

The CIA has reduced its contributions to some intelligence assessments produced by the ODNI, including on the Iran war, according to a Reuters report Tuesday. The CIA did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Brian O’Neill, a former CIA senior executive, said the practical impact of Pulte’s appointment may be limited, especially as CIA Director John Ratcliffe appears to be the president’s senior intelligence adviser.

Still, O’Neill said, “it is reasonable to worry that ODNI will continue its shift from an intelligence management organization toward a political instrument.” Pulte’s thin national security resume, he added, only deepened his concern.