ODNI Reduced Staff by 30 Percent, Acting Director Says

Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte is expected to be replaced by Jay Clayton, whom the Senate is considering for the position.

Bill Pulte in Washington on Feb. 27, 2025, prior to his appointment as acting director of National Intelligence by President Donald Trump. Annabelle Gordon/Reuters

Acting Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Bill Pulte announced on July 28 that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) had been reduced in size for a fifth time under his leadership.

“Good News! In addition to the Historic DECLASSIFICATIONS (Transparency!) by the President, we are, this morning, Executing a 5th and Near Final Round of TERMINATIONS, an approximately 30% Staff Reduction from Weeks Ago,” Pulte wrote in a social media post on July 28.

Pulte’s five rounds of staff reductions came after President Donald Trump said in June that he believed the size of the ODNI, which oversees 18 intelligence agencies, should be reduced. Trump appointed Pulte as acting DNI in June until the Senate could confirm a new director.

In his social media post announcing the fifth round of layoffs on Tuesday, Pulte said, “The Intelligence Community must protect the American people, NOT the political whims of the bloated and corrupt elite class.”

In June, Trump told the Wall Street Journal that he wanted Pulte to remove staff members at the ODNI who were holdovers from other presidential administrations. Trump said Pulte could “start the process” of firing ODNI employees and that the process could be continued by the permanent director of national intelligence.

“I’d like to see it smaller,” he said. “I think there are a lot of people in there that shouldn’t be there.”

The president indicated that Pulte had a greater opportunity to implement mass firings at the agency since he was only appointed as DNI until a permanent replacement for former DNI Tulsi Gabbard was confirmed by the Senate.

“You’re less shackled,” Trump said. “It sort of gives you more power, you know, for a somewhat limited period of time.”

Pulte’s appointment as acting DNI came after Gabbard announced her resignation as intelligence chief in May. Gabbard said she was stepping down from the position to support her husband, Abraham Wilson, after he was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

ODNI previously announced that the agency had implemented a nearly 30 percent reduction of its workforce under Gabbard, resulting in the firing of more than 500 staff members.

Pulte’s temporary appointment to replace Gabbard as acting DNI was met with opposition by Senate Democrats. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) criticized Pulte as “unqualified” and said he had “no experience in intelligence.” Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that Pulte was chosen to be “someone who will be willing to shape intelligence around the president’s wishes.”

The Trump administration recently declassified intelligence records documenting attempts by foreign actors to influence elections in the United States. On July 1, Trump said he told Pulte to “declassify almost everything.”

“Bill is there just for a fairly short period of time. But while he’s there, I said you can declassify whatever you want,” Trump said.

The fifth round of ODNI terminations came after the U.S. Senate voted on Monday to invoke cloture on Jay Clayton, Trump’s DNI nominee. A final vote on his nomination is expected as early as Tuesday evening.

Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, told senators during his confirmation hearing that he would take efforts to increase trust in the DNI office and the intelligence committee. He also committed to strengthening the communication and coordination of the intelligence community.

“The mission of the director of national intelligence is clear: to ensure that the policymakers and institutions that the intelligence community serves, especially the president, our military leaders, and Congress, receive the best possible intelligence in a timely, objective, and independent manner,” Clayton said.

The Senate voted 51–43 on July 27 to advance Clayton’s nomination to serve as DNI. He was favorably recommended to the full Senate for confirmation by the Senate Intelligence Committee in a 9–8 vote on July 21.