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US President Donald Trump has announced that Bill Pulte will assume the role of Acting Director of National Intelligence (DNI) starting June 19, whilst concurrently maintaining his leadership position at the country's primary housing regulatory body.
In a post on Truth Social, the President stated, "William Pulte, who is working closely with Tulsi Gabbard, will be taking over as Acting Director of National Intelligence on Friday, June 19." Trump further noted that Pulte is set to retain his roles as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Chairman of mortgage finance behemoths Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. According to US legislation, an acting DNI is permitted to occupy the office for a maximum of 210 days in the absence of Senate confirmation. This legal provision could enable Pulte to stay in the post until the upcoming midterm elections in November. Speaking to The Wall Street Journal, Trump revealed that he had instructed Pulte to initiate a workforce reduction at the intelligence agency to "start the process" of terminating staff members. "I'd like to see it smaller. I think there are a lot of people in there that shouldn't be there," the President remarked, with reports indicating that his comments were aimed at intelligence personnel who had worked under prior Democratic administrations. He added that whoever is eventually appointed as the permanent DNI should persist with these measures. The announcement follows shortly after the resignation of Tulsi Gabbard, who is scheduled to remain with the agency until June 30 to help oversee the leadership change. Gabbard stepped down to stand by her husband, Abraham Williams, following his diagnosis with a rare type of bone cancer. In her formal resignation correspondence, Gabbard expressed her gratitude to Trump for the privilege of heading the Office of the Director of National Intelligence for the prior 18 months, promising to facilitate a seamless transition period before her departure. "Thank you for your understanding during this deeply personal and difficult time for our family," Gabbard penned. Throughout her tenure as DNI, Gabbard spearheaded initiatives to overhaul the intelligence community. Her efforts included downsizing the agency and dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes within the intelligence framework. Furthermore, Gabbard managed the declassification process of over 500,000 pages of official state records, which encompassed documents concerning the Trump-Russia probe, alongside the assassinations of former US President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert F. Kennedy. (ANI)
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