The new acting director of national intelligence is expected to announce significant cuts to his office as early as Monday, current and former officials said, prompting a warning from the top Democrats on the congressional intelligence committees.
In a letter on Monday to Bill Pulte, who was installed by President Trump as acting director of national intelligence on Friday, Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut and Senator Mark Warner of Virginia warned him against making substantial cuts to his office or declassifying information that could compromise sources.
In recent days, current and former officials have said Mr. Pulte planned to fire or put on leave several hundred employees. Officials briefed on the plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters, said the cuts were in flux and that the exact number Mr. Pulte planned to let go had not been finalized.
Mr. Pulte’s ascension to the post has caused a storm in Congress, where even many Republican lawmakers say Mr. Trump has elevated a political loyalist with no relevant experience. Mr. Pulte has used his position as the director of federal housing programs during the first year of the administration to gather information about Mr. Trump’s political enemies.
“We are concerned that your record as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency demonstrates a willingness to misuse your position, including your access to sensitive information, to pursue President Trump’s perceived political enemies and further his retributive political agenda,” the Democratic lawmakers wrote.
Mr. Himes and Mr. Warner urged Mr. Pulte to preserve all federal records and not to take actions that are better left to a permanent, Senate-confirmed director, a request that Mr. Pulte seems unlikely to honor.
Mr. Trump has said Mr. Pulte is expected to work on election security matters, prompting fears by some officials that he could try to influence the midterm elections. Other officials expect him to declassify documents related to issues that have preoccupied Mr. Trump, including the inquiry into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
But the lawmakers wrote that Mr. Pulte should take care to ensure that any of his declassification efforts follow “established policies and practices” and that he consult career intelligence officials.
“Given the extremely sensitive nature of intelligence, we expect that you will not declassify properly classified information that would compromise intelligence sources and methods, or weaponize the declassification process for partisan political purposes,” they wrote.
The Senate was set last week to fast-track the confirmation of Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to become the permanent director of national intelligence. But Mr. Trump announced he would delay that nomination, a move that paved the way for Mr. Pulte to assume office.
Mr. Pulte is expected to serve at least until Congress’s August recess, though those plans could change, an administration official said.
Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence who stepped down last week, cut about 40 percent of her office, reducing it to 1,300 people. While there is bipartisan support in Congress for shrinking the office further, there is also concern about how Mr. Pulte would make those cuts.
Ms. Gabbard’s cuts have already sent many intelligence officers from other agencies back to their home offices. Others were put on long leaves before they retired or stepped down.
Mr. Pulte’s cuts are also expected to include a mix of reductions, with some officials being fired outright and others put on leaves of absence, giving them an opportunity to land jobs at other agencies.
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