'Deep state firings have begun': Trump's intel chief purges Gabbard loyalists in first major shake-up
Acting Director of Intelligence Bill Pulte has fired 6 appointees put in place by former Director Tulsi Gabbard Pulte's aggressive start Reaction from Congress What's
Acting Director of Intelligence Bill Pulte has fired 6 appointees put in place by former Director Tulsi Gabbard Pulte's aggressive start Reaction from Congress What's next for Pulte Acting Director of Intelligence Bill Pulte has fired six political appointees put in place by former Director Tulsi Gabbard and removed dozens of career intelligence officials from their roles, according to four sources familiar with the moves.The 45 career officials were on joint duty assignment at the Office of the Director of Intelligence (ODNI), meaning they were working at the agency but are technically employed by other intelligence agencies, and were sent back to their home offices, sources told CNN. The Counterterrorism Center, a component of ODNI that had previously been expected to be a key target for Pulte, was not impacted by the cuts, one source familiar with the situation said."Today, I spent time with the Counterterrorism Center team, who is doing an incredible job protecting our Country under President Trump's leadership," Pulte said on X Tuesday evening. "The room was filled with true professionals and American patriots. It is a privilege to work beside them."Another source familiar with the matter said there could be as many as two dozen additional firings in the coming weeks, but the cuts would unlikely go beyond that.This source said Pulte has been consulting career intelligence officials on the reductions.The removals represent the first major move in Pulte's mandate to make drastic reductions at the spy office, which had already been slimmed down under Gabbard.
The ODNI, which acts as a policymaker and coordinator for the 18 agencies that make up the US intelligence community, has been a target of some on the MAGA right who believe it is made up of a "deep state" determined to undermine the president.Trump installed Pulte in the acting role with a mandate to "execute the immediate and needed downsizing of the office," the president wrote in a Truth Social post. "I have named William Pulte to be Acting Director of Intelligence, who will take over on June 19th, and have asked him to execute the immediate and needed downsizing of the office, reverting staff to their home agencies," Trump wrote.Pulte, who has no national security experience and previously did not have a security clearance, showed up at ODNI a day early after asking for a list of every employee in the office so he could assess whether to fire them, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The move caught staff off-guard, including outgoing director Tulsi Gabbard, who was given only a brief heads-up on the visit.In his only other briefing with ODNI before taking over, Pulte asked staff if he could bring the President's Daily Briefing, a highly classified set of intelligence on key national security matters, to his house, raising alarm bells among intelligence officials, according to one source. That source also said Pulte asked about his security clearance level and whether he had access to a government plane.Top Democrats on the Senate and House Intelligence Committees have warned that mass cuts could risk US national security.
The BriefWire