Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Administrator William Pruitt holds a press conference on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, at the Federal Housing Finance Association (FHFA) headquarters in Washington, DC, USA.
Eric Lee | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte has begun a new round of layoffs within the U.S. intelligence community, MS Now reported Friday.
Pruitt, who was selected by President Donald Trump as acting spy director in June, issued termination notices to dozens of intelligence officials on Thursday, MS Now reported, citing intelligence officials who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
Intelligence officials told MS Now that the Trump administration is removing officials it “believes are in the deep state” or who allegedly failed to provide a complete picture of available information.
The White House and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.
CNN first reported last month that Pulte had removed several political appointees who worked for former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who announced her resignation in May.
President Trump reportedly said in early June that he wanted Pruitt to “begin the process” of mass layoffs of DNI employees. The DNI Office oversees 18 U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA and the National Security Agency.
The president’s decision to hire Pulte has drawn sharp bipartisan criticism from members of Congress.
Pruitt is also the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, and has used that role to investigate Trump’s opponents for mortgage fraud.
Amid Congress’ opposition to Prut, President Trump announced in June that he would make Jay Clayton, current attorney for the Southern District of New York and former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, a permanent DNI nominee.
The Senate had scheduled a confirmation hearing for June 17 to fast-track Clayton’s bid. But Trump ended that effort, telling Creighton not to appear in a post on Truth Social hours before the hearing and saying Pruitt would continue as acting DNI for the time being.
Pruitt assumed the interim role on June 19, gaining access to the United States’ most sensitive intelligence data.
