Acting Intelligence Chief Bill Pulte Removes Over 50 Staff in First Wave of ODNI Cuts

Bill Pulte, the newly appointed acting Director of National Intelligence, has initiated a sweeping wave of personnel cuts, removing over 50 career and political staff from the agency just days into his tenure. The sudden reduction in force marks the first major administrative action by Pulte, a housing finance official with no prior national security experience who was tapped by President Donald Trump earlier this month. The shakeup signals the administration's intent to aggressively downsize—and potentially dismantle—the post-9/11 intelligence hub, fulfilling a directive Trump outlined before Pulte even took office.[1][2]

According to sources familiar with the personnel moves, six intelligence officials were outright terminated, while 45 others were reassigned and sent back to their home agencies across the federal government. The cuts targeted both career civil servants and political appointees. Notably, the purge included William Ruger, the deputy director of national intelligence for mission integration. Ruger, who was placed on administrative leave, oversaw the intelligence community's collaborative efforts and managed the primary intelligence support provided to policymakers, including the highly classified President's Daily Brief.[1][2]

The recent dismissals compound a severe contraction of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) that began last year. Under Pulte's predecessor, Tulsi Gabbard, the agency had already absorbed a roughly 40 percent workforce reduction, shrinking its headcount from 2,000 to approximately 1,300 employees. Gabbard, who resigned in May following her husband's cancer diagnosis, had also overseen a budget cut of more than $700 million per year, arguing that the office had become bloated and inefficient over the past two decades.[2]

President Trump has made no secret of his desire to further gut the agency. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal in early June, Trump stated that the ODNI's staffing levels were "way too high for way too long" and suggested that the office "should maybe even be terminated." He explicitly noted that he wanted Pulte to "start the process" of clearing out personnel, particularly holdovers from previous Democratic administrations, before a permanent director is confirmed by the Senate. "Frankly, it might be good for him to shake it up before people come," Trump remarked.[4]

The aggressive dismantling of the ODNI represents a historic pivot in U.S. national security strategy. The office was established in 2004 in direct response to the intelligence failures that preceded the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The 9/11 Commission concluded that the nation's 18 disparate intelligence agencies—including the CIA, NSA, and FBI—were dangerously siloed, hoarding information rather than sharing it. The ODNI was created to serve as the connective tissue, forcing collaboration and ensuring that the president receives a unified, comprehensive assessment of global threats.[2][3]

The rapid downsizing has triggered immediate and fierce bipartisan alarm on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers fear the U.S. is reverting to its pre-9/11 vulnerabilities. Representative James Himes and Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees, sent a joint letter to Pulte warning against the cuts. "Any large cuts would follow on a substantial downsizing that has already occurred in 2025 and risk jeopardizing the mission of an organization explicitly created after 9/11 to prevent any future such terrorist attack," the lawmakers wrote, demanding that Congress be consulted before further structural changes are made.[3]

Unease over the shakeup extends across the aisle. Republican Senator Thom Tillis expressed skepticism regarding Pulte's sweeping mandate, telling reporters that any eliminations should be based on rigorous analysis rather than arbitrary headcount targets. Tillis argued that the acting director should only eliminate positions that can be automated or genuinely prove redundant. The friction over Pulte's appointment and subsequent actions has already spilled over into legislative business, complicating the Senate's efforts to reauthorize key surveillance programs under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.[3]

While internal sources indicate that Pulte believes the removal of 51 staffers is sufficient for the immediate moment, he has reportedly asked his deputies to provide suggestions for further downsizing. Crucially, the agency's counterterrorism group has remained untouched in this initial wave of cuts. As Pulte continues his tenure—which is legally capped at 210 days for an acting director—President Trump has indicated he plans to nominate Jay Clayton, a former federal prosecutor, to serve as the permanent, Senate-confirmed director to carry the administration's overhaul of the intelligence community forward.[1][2]