Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Republican of South Dakota, during a news conference following the Senate Republican policy luncheon at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, Tuesday, June 9, 2026.
Elizabeth Frantz Bloomberg | Getty Images
Bill Pulte, President Donald Trump’s pick for acting director of National Intelligence, is poised to take over that role on Friday after Trump thwarted efforts by Senate Republicans to fast-track his appointment of Jay Clayton to the post.
Trump’s surprise move would give Pulte access to highly classified U.S. intelligence information despite concerns that he might use that information to target the president’s enemies.
Trump on Wednesday said he would keep Pulte on as acting DNI, and barred the Senate from holding Clayton’s same-day confirmation hearing until Congress acted on more legislation.
Trump has said he will not sign an extension of a key national security program, even if it is passed by Congress, unless it includes passage of the controversial Voter ID and proof of citizenship bill.
Trump also said that the Senate must confirm James McDonald, who will replace Clayton as US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, before Clayton can be confirmed by the Senate as director of national intelligence.
Democrats have vowed to oppose any extension of the national security program — Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act — as long as Pulte is Trump’s DNI pick. And it’s not clear that there are enough Republican senatorial votes to pass the election bill.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on Thursday called Pulte a “national security threat.”
“Donald Trump is treating our national security like a political conversation,” said Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
“A lot of things here are Democrats versus Republicans. This is not Democrats versus Republicans,” Warner said.
“These are smart members of both parties in the Senate who say we’ve averted a disaster, and Donald Trump is throwing a live hand grenade.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., on Thursday said of Trump: “Well, I think he’s very committed to Bill Pulte.”
Thune and other Republicans hoped to appease Democrats by quickly confirming Clayton, opening the door to FISA expansion.
Asked what’s next for the Clayton designation and FISA, Thune said, “I’ve never been asked to declassify people before, so that’s a good question for the White House.”
Republicans and Democrats have questioned Pulte’s suitability for the job, citing a lack of national intelligence experience and his actions as head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Pulte has filed multiple investigations into Trump’s opponents over alleged real estate fraud for his role in the agency.
Critics of Trump’s move say the president is putting national security at risk by appointing Pulte and blasting any way forward on FISA.
“Jay was on the verge of getting a very good hearing and maybe even getting the support of the Democrats, and now we’re in a position where that might be the reason why 702 might not be reauthorized,” Sen. Thom Tillis, RN.C., who is retiring at the end of this Congress, told reporters on Wednesday.
Trump tapped Pulte earlier this month to serve as acting DNI after Tulsi Gabbard resigned in May.
After Congress pushed back, Trump said he would nominate Clayton.
The SAVE America Act, the election bill that Trump wants passed as part of the FISA extension, was advanced by the House in February, but has so far stalled in the Senate.
Vice President JD Vance, at a press conference at the White House on Thursday, was asked about the bill’s bleak prospects in the Senate.
“Why don’t we try, and at least get people to vote against it,” Vance said.
“One of the things that bothers me sometimes about the legislative process is that people will go into it saying this is not going to happen, so we’re not going to try. Well, let’s really see,” Vance said.
Meanwhile, some advocates are urging Trump to reconsider his position.
“Democrats have been blocking FISA in bad faith, but confirming Jay Clayton will allow for a quick fix,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., wrote to X.
“Mr. President, by preventing Jay Clayton from testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee, you are putting American lives at risk. Put America first. Do not prevent Jay Clayton from coming before the Intel Committee.”
Trump, however, seems to have gotten into Pulte.
“Well, as long as it takes to get everybody approved,” Trump said Wednesday at the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, when asked how long Clayton’s nomination might be delayed.
“I mean, they were acting rashly and we didn’t get anything out of it,” Trump said.
“Look, he’s a very legal man; he’s very smart. He’s a smart man,” Trump said of Pulte.
–Emily Wilkins again Karen James Sloan contributed to this story.
