Trump Appoints Bill Pulte as DNI

When I heard this morning that cult leader, convicted felon, and failed President Donald Trump had appointed Bill Pulte as acting Director of National Intelligence, I was stunned. But about thirty seconds later, it all made sense. In a normal administration, the DNI's job is to coordinate intelligence involving threats to the United States. But the Trump administration is far from normal. Trump views the government as a personal business, aimed at furthering his own interests. As such, he is less concerned with threats to the U.S. than he is about his own personal priorities. For instance, during Trump's recent trip to China, he was asked if he had raised the issue of China's spying on the United States. Trump's response suggested that he had little concern about China's activities, saying "The question was asked of me yesterday, I guess, ‘What about the fact that China is spying?’ I said, ‘Well, it’s one of those things because we spy like hell on them, too.’" Trump does not want a DNI who will focus on threats to the U.S., but rather one who will pursue Trump's own enemies. In this regard, Pulte is the perfect candidate.

For those who are unfamiliar with Bill Pulte, he is currently the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and also the Chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Pulte is the grandson of William J. Pulte, the founder of PulteGroup, a home construction company. Bill Pulte founded a private equity firm, Pulte Capital, and also served on the board of the PulteGroup. Bill Pulte's father, Mark, was a real estate investor who once lost out to Trump in bidding for a property in Palm Beach for which Jeffrey Epstein was also a bidder. After Trump sold the property, Mark Pulte developed a mansion on part of it. Bill Pulte purchased a membership at Mar-a-Lago and became friends with Donald Trump, Jr.

Pulte's tenure at the FHFA has been far from orthodox. He has concentrated less on housing matters and more on pursuing the President's foes. The Wall Street Journal began a profile of Pulte by describing an episode in which Pulte "marched into the Oval Office" and:

told the president he had identified leakers who were undermining the administration. He was carrying a “Ghostbusters”-style poster that featured pictures of administration officials and outside allies, outlined by red circles with lines through their faces, according to officials familiar with the meeting.

Notoriously, Pulte dug up the mortgage records of several of Trump's enemies, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, Senator Adam Schiff, and Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook. He accused all three of mortgage fraud and made referrals to the Department of Justice, which launched criminal probes. Pulte either misunderstood or lied about what the records disclosed because, so far, his allegations have been unsupported. Multiple grand juries have refused to indict James, and no formal charges have been lodged against either Cook or Schiff.

Pulte's use of mortgage records raised concerns within Fannie Mae, leading to an internal complaint that he had improperly obtained the records. When the FHFA inspector general took up the complaint, the inspector general was asked to step down and "about a dozen members of the ethics and investigations units of Fannie were fired".

Pulte was also behind attempts to investigate then-Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board wrote that "Bill Pulte of the Federal Housing Finance Agency wrote a report that made its way to Jeanine Pirro" that led to subpoenas being issued to the Federal Reserve. Powell successfully fought the subpoenas in court. The Editorial Board further wrote about the subpoenas, saying, "In the annals of political lawfare there’s dumb, and then there’s the criminal subpoena federal prosecutors delivered Friday to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell." The same article described Pulte as "an especially eager toady".

What Trump expects from a DNI is demonstrated by the experience of Tulsi Gabbard, who Pulte will be replacing. Gabbard was often left out of national security meetings because she tended to provide the determinations of the intelligence community, even when that was not what Trump wanted to hear. For instance, Gabbard repeatedly testified on Capitol Hill that Iran was not attempting to pursue nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, Trump has justified his war against Iran on his claim that Iran is developing nuclear weapons.

Instead, Trump preferred Gabbard to concentrate on domestic witch hunts. For instance, Gabbard made a strange appearance at an FBI operation to seize 2020 presidential election voting ballots in Fulton County, Georgia. Trump is convinced that the 2020 election was stolen from him, and he wants his DNI to help prove it.

Given Pulte's willingness to pursue Trump's enemies from the relatively low stature as head of the FHFA, imagine what he will be able to attempt at the top of the U.S. intelligence infrastructure? Trump often talks about the weaponization of government, but he has been more guilty of that than most. Pulte has been a willing soldier, and now is being put into a position where he can be a serious threat.

You may be wondering what qualifications Pulte has for his new job. The answer, in the traditional sense, is none. As 50 U.S. Code § 3023 states: "Any individual nominated for appointment as Director of National Intelligence shall have extensive national security expertise." Pulte has no national security expertise. Nevertheless, Pulte has the one qualification that Trump requires: personal loyalty to Trump.

Pulte is being appointed to an acting role which allows him to serve for 210 days. He will continue to serve in his current positions as head of the FHFA and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, making DNI a part-time job for him. It is unlikely that Pulte could pass a Senate confirmation process. For one thing, he would need the approval of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. One of the Republican members of that committee is John Cornyn, who was just defeated in his primary election after Trump endorsed his opponent. Another is Susan Collins, who faces a difficult reelection battle this November. Both of those members would likely find it in their interest to vote against Pulte. However, if the Senate rejects any other nominee, Pulte can continue to serve successive 210 day periods. As a result, Trump can game the system and keep Pulte in place by simply nominating a series of candidates who are sure to be rejected.

Trump's appointment of Pulte as DNI not only shows that Trump is determined to rely on trusted loyalists, but that the circle of such individuals is small and likely decreasing. Marco Rubio, for instance, serves as both the Secretary of State and the National Security Advisor. He also served for a time as the National Archivist. Russell Vought is the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Both Rubio and Vought also briefly served as acting administrators of the United States Agency for International Development. Being a Trump loyalist can clearly lead to an expansion of your portfolio.

With his appointment of Pulte, Trump is likely creating a great risk to U.S. national security. Pulte is unqualified for the position, will be busy with three other jobs, and will be taking over an agency that has already suffered significant internal turmoil such as the resignation of former National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent, who has become an administration critic. However, this is of little interest to Trump. Trump's concern is pursuing his domestic enemies and, for that task, Pulte's qualifications may be unequaled. Given what Pulte attempted simply with his access to mortgage records, imagine what he might try when he has his hands on Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act authorities? Section 702 currently expires on June 12 and Congress may want to give consideration to what powers it wishes to grant Pulte. Or, as the blogger Emptywheel has suggested, "Democrats Should Give Trump a Choice: Bill Pulte at DNI or Section 702 Reauthorization."