Trump taps housing finance director Pulte as acting director of national intelligence after Gabbard

Trump taps housing finance director Pulte as acting Director of National Intelligence after Gabbard 1 of 5 | Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, July 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) 2 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 3 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte, speaks to reporters at the White House, July 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File) 4 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte speaks with reporters at the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle) 5 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 1 of 5 | Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, July 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) 1 of 5 Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, July 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 2 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 2 of 5 Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 3 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte, speaks to reporters at the White House, July 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File) 3 of 5 Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte, speaks to reporters at the White House, July 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 4 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte speaks with reporters at the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle) 4 of 5 Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte speaks with reporters at the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share 5 of 5 | Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 5 of 5 Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] Washington (AP) — President Donald Trump has tapped Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to be the acting Director of National Intelligence — putting a real estate scion and fierce Trump loyalist in a key national security post as the U.S. remains at war with Iran. Trump made the surprise announcement Tuesday on social media that Pulte would be replacing Tulsi Gabbard, the former Hawaii congresswoman who served as the Director of National Intelligence.The Republican president cited Pulte’s work at the FHFA and his role as chair of the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, saying that the 38 year-old “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.” 2 MIN READ 6 MIN READ 13 MIN READ Pulte’s sudden elevation to a role coordinating sensitive national security matters is a sign of how Trump is putting a priority on loyalty over a traditional resume full of previous military and intelligence assignments. It’s unclear what national security expertise Pulte has, but he has been a frequent guest on Air Force One as Trump has traveled to Mar-a-Lago, his home and club in Palm Beach, Florida. Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte speaks with reporters at the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle) Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte speaks with reporters at the White House, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share As the grandson of the founder of PulteGroup, one of the country’s largest homebuilders, Pulte has cut a combative streak on social media and used his post at the FHFA to attack perceived opponents of the Trump administration. His time overseeing mortgage finance has been linked with criminal referrals for mortgage fraud by public officials Trump sought to punish, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat; Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.; and Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve, who was nominated by a Democratic president, Joe Biden.Pulte has famously gone after then-Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting the central bank’s benchmark interest rates as aggressively as the president wanted. He has also been linked to ideas such as the 50-year mortgage and efforts to lower mortgage rates through the purchase of home loan debt that have not paid off as promised.Trump said Pulte will keep his other positions even as he fills in for Gabbard, who resigned last month after revealing her husband’s cancer diagnosis. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, July 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, July 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share If formally nominated, Pulte would need to be confirmed by the Senate to hold the position full time. Boak covers the White House and economic policy for The Associated Press. He joined the AP in 2013.