What’s going on: Yesterday, President Donald Trump named former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s acting replacement, and of course, it’s a man. (Though after seeing what happened to Kristi Noem and Pam Bondi, that’s no surprise.) Bill Pulte, currently a housing official and the chairman of mortgage firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, will take over as acting leader of the nation’s spy agencies. It’s a pretty dramatic promotion: Pulte will go from running federal housing finance to supervising the CIA, NSA, and 16 other intelligence agencies. His recent work included helping the administration gather information for investigations involving Trump’s perceived political enemies. Alias never prepared us for this.
I’ve got a million questions: Join the club. But all roads to Pulte’s acting appointment lead back here: He has no known intelligence or security experience; instead, Trump pointed to Pulte’s business credentials on social media. Because Pulte will serve in an acting capacity, he can take the job without Senate confirmation and remain in the role for up to 210 days. It’s also still unclear whether Trump plans to nominate him for the position permanently. Pulte is one of Trump’s most visible loyalists online, and as acting director, he’s expected to focus on Trump’s priorities, including efforts to prove the false claim that voter fraud cost him the 2020 election. Whatever Pulte does on the job, he certainly shares the president’s flair for social media and a vibes-based approach to capitalization. Rarely has someone tweeted their way into a job this important.
