President Donald Trump said he wants acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte to start reducing the size of U.S. intelligence offices, including the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
President Donald Trump said he has directed incoming acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte to begin the process of removing a large number of employees from the U.S. intelligence community as part of a broader effort to shrink federal intelligence operations.
Trump told The Wall Street Journal in an interview Friday that he believes the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which oversees 18 federal intelligence agencies and units, is too large and may not be necessary in its current form.
“I’d like to see it smaller. I think there are a lot of people in there that shouldn’t be there,” Trump said, pointing to holdovers from the Biden and Obama administrations.
Asked whether he wants Pulte to fire employees, Trump said he wants him to “start the process.” Trump added that his eventual nominee for the permanent DNI role should continue that work.
The move follows Trump’s announcement this week that he was appointing Pulte, who currently serves as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to serve as acting director of national intelligence.
“I am appointing the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and Chairman of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, William J. Pulte, to serve as Acting Director of National Intelligence,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
Trump said Pulte would remain in his housing finance roles while temporarily leading the intelligence community.
“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 said. “During this period, he will remain Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and Chairman of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac. Congratulations to Director Pulte!”
The appointment surprised some Trump advisers and drew skepticism from several Republicans on Capitol Hill, according to The Wall Street Journal. Critics raised concerns about Pulte’s lack of national security experience.
Trump told reporters at the White House on Thursday that Pulte is serving only in an acting capacity and that he is interviewing candidates for the permanent DNI position.
The appointment also prompted a Senate fight. Three Republican senators joined Democrats on Thursday in supporting an amendment that would have barred a Senate-confirmed leader of another department from serving as acting director of national intelligence.
The amendment was introduced by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and was aimed at blocking Pulte from serving as acting DNI. Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted with Democrats in favor of the proposal.
The amendment failed in a 49-49 vote.
Trump’s push to reduce the intelligence workforce comes as his administration seeks to reshape federal agencies and remove officials it views as holdovers from prior administrations. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence was created to coordinate the nation’s intelligence agencies, but Trump said he wants the office reduced in size and expects Pulte to begin that process while a permanent nominee is selected.
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