Bill Pulte Appointed as Acting Director of National Intelligence President Trump has named Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as the acting director of national intelligence. Pulte is best known for his role as a partisan attack dog for the president and has a history of weaponizing his role. The Senate was moving toward a robust three-year extension ahead of the law's Friday expiration, but Trump's appointment announcement threw a grenade into the delicate congressional negotiations around one of the nation's key spy powers. Bill Pulte testifies before the Senate Banking Committee on February 27, 2025. President Trump has picked Pulte to serve as acting director of national intelligence. Pulte, the 38-year-old director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is best known for his role as a partisan attack dog for the president. He was a prominent advocate for Trump's push to fire then-Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and used his sizable social media following to push for mortgage fraud investigations into Trump's perceived enemies. As director of national intelligence, Pulte would oversee the entire U.S. intelligence apparatus.The Senate was moving toward a robust three-year extension ahead of the law's Friday expiration after two prior short-term extensions. However, Trump's Truth Social post dramatically changed the context of the talks. Many Democrats, concerned that Pulte has no national security sector experience and a history of weaponizing his role, made clear they would not support extending FISA section 702 with him in the role