Housing finance guru Bill Pulte captured President Donald Trump‘s attention by referring the commander in chief’s political enemies to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution over allegations of mortgage fraud. But Pulte, a frequent flyer on Air Force One, has used his political savvy and Trump’s favor to leverage an otherwise lackluster role as Federal Housing Finance Agency director and chairman of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into a Cabinet-level position: acting director of national intelligence.Roger Stone has taken credit for Pulte’s meteoric rise to the upper echelons of the intelligence community, despite concerns regarding the status of his security clearance.
But a source close to the White House told the Washington Examiner Pulte got the job because, in part, he asked for it.
“He likes Pulte. He has a soft spot for Pulte,” the source said. “Clearly, Pulte obviously wanted it, and Trump was like, ‘Sure, why not.’ I don’t know if the Senate’s pushback will work or if it’ll just anger Trump and make him dig in his heels.”
That explanation is doing little to reassure lawmakers who question whether Pulte possesses the traditional qualifications for one of the government’s most sensitive national security jobs.
