r/moderatepolitics • u/chloedeeeee77 • 4h ago
News Article Trump names controversial top housing official to be acting director of national intelligence
https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/02/politics/bill-pulte-intelligence-director-trumpTrump has selected Bill Pulte, the current head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to be the Acting Director of National Intelligence after the departure of Tulsi Gabbard.
During Pulte’s tenure at the FHFA, he has pushed the DOJ to prosecute some of Trump’s political enemies, including Lisa Cook of the Federal Reserve, New York Attorney General Letitia James, former Rep. Eric Swalwell, Senator Adam Schiff and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Only the referral for AG James resulted in charges, and those were later dismissed by a judge.
Pulte also has no professional background in national security, intelligence, the legal sphere or the military. Rather, Trump touted Pulte’s “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”. Pulte will stay on at the FHFA while he is Acting DNI.
Do you feel comfortable with a part-time Director of National Intelligence who has no background in a similar role? Do you think he’s likely to be able to put partisan interests aside to fulfill the role responsibly, or is there a chance intelligence will be weaponized against Trump’s political enemies? As Trump has previously denounced DEI, do you think Pulte is the most qualified person for the job?
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u/dr_sloan 4h ago
This is also the guy who sold Trump on the idea of 50 year mortgages and initiated the bogus investigations into mortgages held by Letitia James and Lisa Cook. It’s pretty clear he’s a partisan actor whose leveraged his position to score points with Trump. Can’t imagine he would do anything differently as the acting DNI.
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u/cake22 4h ago
This is also the guy who hosted a memestock grifter party in an empty airplane hanger for the former stockholders of the (now bankrupt) Bed Bath & Beyond where people slapped each other on stage across the face with an oversized green dildo.
The rabbit hole with this guy is deep but also deeply funny. We haven't even touched on the arson stuff or the family beef with Pulte Homes (which he hasn't been affiliated with for several years now).
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u/Rufuz42 4h ago edited 4h ago
I’m pretty sure this is the guy who also provided Trump the meme of him being Jesus healing people to post online that Trump later said was him being a doctor. Both explanations are totally insane.
Only semi related, but my dad was in housing his whole life in the Southeast and HATED Pulte Homes and refused to work with them after a while.
Edit: he’s also a major grifter from the GME / AMC “MOASS” scene. That whole movement was a farce and he either knowingly took advantage of people or wasn’t able to understand that it was a scam himself. Embarrassing tbh.
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u/Elegant_Athlete_7882 4h ago
initiated the bogus investigations into mortgages held by Letitia James and Lisa Cook
It's worth noting that manner in which he got the material to start those investigation was likely illegal, but he fired the people who were looking into that.
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u/HavingNuclear 2h ago
Thank god we dismantled DEI to make room for this administration's meritocracy.
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 3h ago
Yep. I am a supporter and this is one of the worst picks, right down there with Kristy Noem.
A 50 year mortgage is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard of. Most people will just be lifetime renters with all the responsibility of a landlord while the banks make more money. The second I heard it i got mad, because in my view ideas like that are the opposite ofnwhat his position is supposed to do.
Honestly though, the DNI is kind of a figurehead from what I have heard. Its title outweighs its importance.
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u/beatlemaniac711 3h ago
Why are you a supporter?
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u/Enzhymez 3h ago
Well for the most part it seems that being a Trump supporter at this point in time is focused specifically on making the lives of their political counter parts terrible even at the cost of collateral damage to themselves.
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u/beatlemaniac711 3h ago
This theory has been around and I don't see his supporters doing much to disprove it.
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u/Enzhymez 3h ago
Every single Trump supporter in my life has abandoned all their principles on anti war and the cost of living it’s all culture war nonsense and shitting on democrats.
Obviously that’s subjective but from the rhetoric I’ve seen online it seems that’s just how it is
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 3h ago
Well, I fundamentally disagree with much more of the policies and demeanor of the people on the other side.
At the presidential level, Democrats havent presented a candidate even capable of doing the job IMO since 2016, and, like many conservatives, I would never vote for Hillary.
I have received several replies to my critical comments of politicians I support over the years, and it always confuses me. IMO there hasnt been a perfect politician since maybe lincoln (doubt he would hold up with modern media scrutiny). Obama scores high on political talent, if policies are taken out of it. If you do not have criticisms of the politicians you support, i would argue that you are dangerously close to anti-intellectual groupthink or haven't looked into the candidate enough.
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u/beatlemaniac711 3h ago
I asked why you support Donald Trump and your only response is to talk about why you hate Democrats?
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 2h ago
Yes. I dont like politicians, and my view most of the time is that I vote for the candidate I dislike the least. Its a pretty common voting practice in the US if you havent heard of it.
The "What is Aleppo" comment from Gary Johnson way back in 2016 disillusioned me from third party candidates, they arent serious.
When you only have two options, yes the characteristics of who you dont vote for matter just as much as the one of the one you do. Simple logic.
On a general level, i like the border policy, i trust him more on the economy, even with Iran i like the foreign policy. I just dont want to get into a nitpicking argument which you seem eager to start lol.
Edit: hate is a strong word. I said fundamentally disagree. I have voted Democrat at the state and local level before.
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u/beatlemaniac711 2h ago
I asked what characteristics of Donald Trump do you support, which you did name and then said you don't want to start an argument lol. You seem very defensive.
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 2h ago
You actually never asked that question.
Considering you are being a bit aggressive and rejected my first answer, even though "vote for the politician you hate the least" is a very common thing in the US, I think being defensive is justified. In my head you either dont care about my opinion and just want points you can argue with, or dont understand what a binary choice is.
I have never had a productive conversation when it starts like this. Maybe you can prove me wrong. Considering I literally started by criticizing a politician you dont like, I doubt it.
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u/beatlemaniac711 2h ago
My first reply was literally asking you why you are a supporter and you went on a diatribe about why you don't support Democrats. There was nothing about Trump or his policies or anything specific he does that you support and you still can't give a solid answer without being defensive.
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 2h ago
Yeah so you do not understand what a binary choice is. That information is highly relevant. I am not going to explain it again lol.
I also did give reasons, so I am not sure why you are still bringing it up.
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u/Big_Test_Icicle 2h ago
Going down this thread made me curious. I too would like to hear the characteristics you like about Trump that made you want to support him. Based on your responses you hate Trump least relative to Harris. What things about Trump did you like that made him edge out Harris? For example, did you like his stance on deporting immigrants without due process, how he spoke, how he bahaved? Just curious.
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u/rowyourboat740 1h ago
What would Harris or Hillary do that was worse than what Trump is doing in his 2nd term?
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u/Small_Document642 1h ago
"But the Democrats were worse" will be the epitaph inscribed by MAGA on the tombstone of the country.
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u/MyHeadNeedsTuning 2h ago edited 30m ago
Who better to compile an enemy list than the Director of National Intelligence?
The Acting DNI can serve for 210 days before a nomination must be sent to the U.S. Senate.
Pulte's qualifications? "He has deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America, the safety and soundness of the Markets…" (Trump)
And I thought that was the primary responsibility of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the SEC, and Treasury.
Eighteen intelligence agencies report to the Director of National Intelligence so I guess it can be a part-time job.
Trump wants to have direct supervisory authority over intelligence so Bill Pulte, the ultimate can-do sycophant is the best choice to make America ... something never seen before...
Maybe Trump will push Pulte to be the Republican nominee for the presidency in 2028?
It's not television. "You have just crossed over into the Twilight Zone."
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u/Grouchy-Offer-7712 25m ago
I already said I hate the pick. Do you think he will be nominated for 2028? 🤣🤣🤣
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u/Jackalman71 4h ago
Having one person do two jobs, one which they are in no way qualified for? Trump really is running this country like a business.
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u/Kershiser22 2h ago
Is he qualified for either job?
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u/Afro_Samurai 1h ago
In both cases his job is to be loyal first, ask questions second. He is well qualified for both.
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u/gayfrogs4alexjones 4h ago
He’s only qualified because he wants to go after Trumps enemies and now he can with the power of state intelligence
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u/Waste-Time-2440 3h ago
"No experience in intelligence" is the perfect metaphor for this entire administration.
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u/Elegant_Athlete_7882 4h ago edited 3h ago
Does it seem to anyone else that, since the end of DEI, we've had less qualified candidates running things? The most egregious example I can think of is the guy running FEMA's rescue and recovery division who believes he was teleported to a Waffle House, but there are plenty more.
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u/HavingNuclear 1h ago
I'm sure all the people who were Very Upset at their company's HR decisions are about to show up here and affirm how the Republican party has lost them for this.
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u/Tao1764 1h ago
As always, this is why the anti-DEI arguments never landed for me. This administration so clearly doesn't care about properly qualified/experienced hires, and they receive so little pushback from the supposed anti-DEI crowd when they make hires like this, that I simply cannot believe that the crusade against DEI is rooted in genuine desire for the most qualified candidates.
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u/neuronexmachina 4h ago
Wow, the Trump admin is really abusing the PVRAs provisions by appointing an "acting" director who was Senate-confirmed for a completely different role. As far as I can tell, there's basically zero examples of non-Trump Presidents putting appointees into positions completely different from what the Senate confirmed them for. Trump has several examples though:
Bill Pulte: Federal Housing Finance Agency -> Director of National Intelligence (Trump's official reasoning is literally that the roles both deal with a lot of money)
Richard Grennel: US Ambassador to Germany -> DNI (2020)
Mick Mulvaney (2017): went from running the White House's budget to directing and trying to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Since Pulte has zero chance of being confirmed, I rather doubt he's ever going to actually sit for a confirmation hearing. IMHO, he's just there to further weaponize the DNI against Trump's perceived "enemies within".
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u/LeeSansSaw 3h ago
This is terrible.
Tulsi Gabbard was involved in seizing voting machines. Something that intelligence agencies should never be involved in. No excuse.
Now the guy heading the DNI is a person with demonstrated actions of going after Trump’s “enemies”. This isn’t just bad, it’s dangerous.
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u/ImperialxWarlord 4h ago
Just when you think you’ve hit the bottom of the barrel…
Was there no loyalist with some level of experience that could’ve been asked? Is he really this desperate and lacking people willing to work for him?
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u/TintedApostle 3h ago
Seems to me at least DEI assured some level of experience and capability in competition to "He is my guy".
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u/RefrigeratorThese427 45m ago
>Do you feel comfortable with a part-time Director of National Intelligence who has no background in a similar role? Do you think he’s likely to be able to put partisan interests aside to fulfill the role responsibly, or is there a chance intelligence will be weaponized against Trump’s political enemies?
Considering this dude's past partisan actions going after Lisa Cook, and Tulsi's foray into election conspiracies before her resignation, I guarantee this is for relitigating his 2020 loss all over again with someone who will follow orders religiously. It does not make me feel comfortable. In fact, it makes me think he's gearing up for a "China hacked our elections" mid term coup in 2026 with someone who will help him carry it out.
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u/Secret_Jesus 4h ago
If anyone doesn’t know, this guy has an incredible history with going deep into a conspiracy around Bed Bath and Beyond. He spoke for years on podcasts before, during, and after the bankruptcy egging people to buy more and that eventually the company would emerge from bankruptcy and make them all rich.
He is a genuine snake oil salesman. Just a complete clown show in every facet.