William Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) nominee for US President Donald Trump, during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025.
Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said Thursday that Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte will not be appointed to that position permanently.
Trump’s comment came two days after he tapped Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting DNI. He is replacing outgoing DNI Tulsi Gabbard.
The move sparked criticism on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers decried his lack of intelligence experience and his history as a political attack dog for Trump.
“It’s not a permanent, he’s not going to be permanent, because you know, I don’t think he’d want to be permanent,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday when asked why he thinks Pulte is the best person for the job.
“He’s a very smart guy, and you may find out some things about the rigged elections, etc., etc.”
Trump hinted at Pulte digging into domestic investigations, despite the U.S. intelligence community’s focus on foreign targets.
Gabbard sparked controversy in January when she showed up at an FBI raid that seized records related to the 2020 election from the Fulton County Clerk’s Office in Georgia.
Gabbard told congressional lawmakers that Trump “requested” that she attend the raid and that she only observed the execution of an FBI search warrant there “for a brief period of time.”
Trump on Thursday said, “We’re interviewing people right now” for the DNI post.
Pulte is “somebody just to take it over for a little while,” the president said.
Trump previously said Pulte would continue to lead FHFA and serve as chairman of the mortgage groups Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while serving as acting DNI.
The DNI oversees the U.S. intelligence community, which includes the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency.
Trump also said Pulte had qualifications for the job, despite his lack of a background in intelligence.
“I think he does, actually, because he’s smart,” Trump said. “I wasn’t greatly experienced in national security, and I think I’ve done a really great job with it.”
“I would say that Bill is a guy that will be able to figure it out very quickly,” Trump said. “Again, it’s short-term, but he may be very effective for a short period.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. on Tuesday had scoffed at Pulte’s appointment.
“We don’t need a weaponized DNI, we need professionals there,” Thune said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in an X post on Tuesday called Pulte “a partisan thug with no experience in intelligence.”
