Trump Names Real Estate Executive to Lead Intelligence Coordinator, Mandates Cuts

President Trump appointed William J. Pulte, a real estate executive with no intelligence background, as Acting Director of National Intelligence on June 9, 2026, ordering staff reductions across the ODNI—the office that supervises seventeen intelligence agencies and controls their budgets. His lack of expertise mirrors Trump's pattern of prioritizing loyalty over credentials. Downsizing coordination staff risks fracturing intelligence sharing between agencies and triggers congressional oversight requirements.