Bill Pulte Celebrates Office Staff Reductions Amid Congressional Skepticism
Bill Pulte, the acting director of national intelligence, spent his final days on the job celebrating purported efforts to terminate employees in his office. Speaking on Tuesday just hours before the Senate was expected to confirm his replacement, Jay Clayton, Mr. Pulte stated that he had reduced staff at the organization by nearly a third since taking the role of spy chief in June. Mimicking President Trump’s social media style in an X post, Mr. Pulte declared a fifth and near-final round of terminations resulting in an approximate 30% staff reduction.
Doubt on Capitol Hill Over Unexplained Spy Office Cuts
Despite the flurry of social media posts, current and former officials stated that few people have actually been fired in recent weeks from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Members of Congress have been left questioning whether the cuts match the claimed numbers, especially as Mr. Pulte’s office has provided no details or explanations. Rachel Cohen, a spokeswoman for Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, noted that the acting D.N.I. has declined to provide the Senate Intelligence Committee with the necessary information to assess the accuracy or basis of those decisions.
Scrutiny Over Counting Methods and Impact on the National Intelligence Council
Former U.S. intelligence officials expressed disbelief regarding the reduction claims, explaining that Mr. Pulte appeared to be counting employees whose tours of duty were already complete and returning to their home agencies as previously planned. Additionally, they said he has counted unfilled positions at the National Counterterrorism Center and other areas as terminations. These adjustments have hit the National Intelligence Council the hardest—a core analytical group that reviews conclusions from various spy agencies and guards against groupthink—which previously saw leadership changes and the elimination of its Strategic Futures Group under former director Tulsi Gabbard.
Before stepping down, Ms. Gabbard left the office with about 1,700 employees, including 1,300 full-time government workers and 400 contractors. Mr. Pulte initially placed a handful of close aides to Ms. Gabbard on administrative leave and directed roughly 75 intelligence officers from agencies like the C.I.A., N.S.A., and D.I.A. to return to their home organizations. Julia Curlee, a former longtime C.I.A. analyst, criticized the cuts as a performance intended to please Mr. Trump, warning that the long-term consequences will manifest as low morale and a reluctance among Americans to apply for intelligence roles.
