Sen. Warner warns of risks from Pulte's intelligence appointment

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., speaks at a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 3 in Washington. Warner called on Tulsi Gabbard to testify in person after raising concerns about her presence at an FBI raid on a Georgia election office related to the 2020 election. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images hide caption

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President Donald Trump's decision to appoint Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence is drawing skepticism from Democrats, who question both his qualifications and the timing of the move.

Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told Morning Edition on Wednesday that Pulte "would not even qualify" under the law, saying he has "no experience in the military, no experience in Congress, no experience in the intel community or law enforcement" and was chosen because he is "100% loyal to doing anything and everything President Trump demands."

Warner also argued that making Pulte an acting chief means he effectively gets "six months' runway" that could keep him atop the intelligence community until after the November midterm elections.

Created after the Sept. 11 attacks, the director of national intelligence oversees and coordinates the nation's 18 intelligence agencies. Pulte, currently head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has no public record of military service or national intelligence experience. He will take over for Tulsi Gabbard.

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Trump, in his announcement , praised Pulte's "deep experience managing the most sensitive matters in America, the safety and soundness of the Markets, and over 10 Trillion Dollars at Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac."

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Warner said giving Pulte control of "all of our intelligence agencies with all the absolutely classified things" while Congress debates whether to let a key surveillance tool lapse would amount to "almost unilaterally disarming in terms of Russia, China, Iran, and terrorists," adding, "We have no idea whether the individual even has a security clearance."

In the interview, Warner lays out Democrats' main concerns, arguing that Trump is choosing a close loyalist to oversee the spy agencies and warning that the move could derail efforts to renew timely surveillance authorities.

Listen to the interview by clicking play on the blue box above.