Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte walks outside the White House, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Washington.
Mark Schiefelbein | AP
President Donald Trump on Tuesday tapped Bill Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as acting director of national intelligence, putting the expansive U.S. intelligence community in the hands of a loyalist who has targeted the president’s foes.
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s current DNI, announced last month that she would resign from the role effective June 30.
Pulte, who has no prior experience in an intelligence role, will keep his existing titles as FHFA director and chairman of the mortgage groups Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post announcing the pick.
Trump had previously announced that Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas would take over as acting DNI after Gabbard left.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for clarification on when Pulte’s tenure at DNI would begin, and whether Lukas would remain in his current role.
“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,” Trump wrote in his Truth Social post.
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