Acting DNI Pulte Orders 300 Firings from National Counterterrorism Center on First Day

Politico, citing two anonymized sources, reported that Pulte directed ODNI staff late Thursday to compile a list of roughly 300 NCTC employees for dismissal in coming weeks, against a workforce of more than 1,000 1. He arrived at ODNI a day ahead of schedule, catching staff and outgoing director Gabbard off-guard, and requested a full employee roster to assess broader terminations, CNN reported Bill Pulte arrives early, eyes firing hundreds" data-source="CNN" data-url="https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/19/politics/bill-pulte-intel-chief-takes-office" data-rt="secondary" data-mbfc="high" data-otype="broadcaster">2. One source familiar with Pulte's thinking told Politico he is focused on firing Gabbard-era staff over suspected leaks; Clayton did not object when Pulte raised dismissing holdovers 1. House Intelligence ranking member Jim Himes stated Pulte is "legally not qualified" for the role and pledged close committee scrutiny of personnel decisions 12. In a prior ODNI briefing, Pulte asked whether he could bring the President's Daily Brief home and whether his clearance was top-secret, per CNN's sources, despite having had no security clearance prior to the appointment 2.