President Donald Trump tapped Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as acting director of national intelligence after Tulsi Gabbard resigned following her husband’s rare bone cancer diagnosis—an unusual move that avoids Senate confir
When Tulsi Gabbard walked away from the director of national intelligence job, it wasn’t a policy fight that drove the decision—it was a diagnosis at home. Gabbard announced she was resigning in connection with her husband’s rare bone cancer.
On June 2, President Donald Trump made the personnel change public with an unusual choice to fill the gap. In a post on Truth Social, he named Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as the new acting director of national intelligence to replace Gabbard.
Trump framed the pick as a matter of managing risk in sensitive systems. He said Pulte has “deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America. the safety and soundness of the Markets.” The role. however. comes with a key twist: Pulte is stepping in as acting director rather than being nominated for the full-time position.
That distinction matters because it changes how the process moves through Washington. By serving as an acting director, Pulte would not need Senate confirmation. Trump also said Pulte would not give up his current posts. Even after taking the acting intelligence title. Pulte would remain in his positions as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and chairman of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac.
For Gabbard, the departure has been tied to her family situation. She previously announced in May that she would resign as the nation’s top intelligence official because of her husband’s rare bone cancer diagnosis. Her resignation set up the vacancy Trump moved to fill.
The sequence is stark: a top intelligence role turns over due to a medical emergency. and the replacement is someone with no prior intelligence experience—placed into the position without Senate confirmation. Pulte’s new authority sits alongside his ongoing leadership over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. keeping him at the center of the mortgage finance system even as he takes on national intelligence responsibilities.
As of now, Trump has not described a path to a full-time appointment for Pulte; the acting title keeps the decision on a faster track while the vacancy in the intelligence leadership role continues. Gabbard’s resignation remains the catalyst, grounded in the diagnosis she cited for stepping down.
Trump Bill Pulte acting director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard Truth Social Federal Housing Finance Agency Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Senate confirmation intelligence leadership