WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump appointed Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence on June 2, 2026. Trump announced the appointment on Truth Social, stating that Pulte would assume the role following Tulsi Gabbard’s resignation.
Gabbard, a former congresswoman and military veteran, announced her resignation as director of national intelligence effective June 30, citing her husband’s cancer diagnosis. Her departure created a vacancy in the position that oversees the U.S. intelligence community.
Pulte currently serves as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and as chair of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. According to the White House, he will retain those roles while serving as acting director of national intelligence. Trump praised Pulte in his Truth Social post, saying, “William 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.”
Pulte has no prior experience in an intelligence role, and it is unclear what national security expertise he possesses. If formally nominated for the position on a permanent basis, he would require Senate confirmation.
According to one source, Pulte has used his position at the Federal Housing Finance Agency to target perceived opponents of the Trump administration. The same source alleges that his tenure has been associated with criminal referrals for mortgage fraud against New York Attorney General Letitia James, Senator Adam Schiff, and Federal Reserve member Lisa Cook. These claims are based on limited sourcing and have not been independently corroborated.
Pulte has been a frequent guest on Air Force One during Trump’s travel to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. He is the grandson of the founder of PulteGroup, one of the largest homebuilders in the U.S. He has also criticized Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting interest rates as aggressively as Trump wanted and has promoted policy ideas such as the 50-year mortgage and purchasing home loan debt to lower mortgage rates—initiatives that, according to one account, have not delivered the promised results.