President Trump鈥檚 choice of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence to replace Tulsi Gabbard is raising concerns among Democrats and Republicans.
Pulte does not have a national security background and has used his position as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency to go after Trump鈥檚 perceived , including New York Attorney General Letitia James.
鈥淲ell, it鈥檚 really incomprehensible. It鈥檚 almost as though April Fool鈥檚 Day has come again,鈥� John Bolton told Here & Now鈥檚 Robin Young. 鈥淚 think the lack of qualifications speaks for itself.鈥�
Bolton served as national security adviser during Trump鈥檚 first term and as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations during George W. Bush鈥檚 administration.
He has since become one of Trump鈥檚 biggest critics.
2 questions with John Bolton
Are you worried that he will do as he has done in the housing role and use the intelligence agency somehow for retribution?
鈥淲ell, I think he may try to. [Outgoing Director of National Intelligence] Tulsi Gabbard went way over the line when she went down to to assist or participate in an FBI effort to get ballots from the 2020 election. I think that whole effort is misguided and beyond the president鈥檚 authority, but it鈥檚 particularly inappropriate for the director of national intelligence to be involved. But with Gabbard having set that precedent, I鈥檓 sure that鈥檚 on Pulte鈥檚 mind.
鈥淏ut I think there鈥檚 actually a threat in the national security space because I think many of our foreign partners who share intelligence with us and with whom we share intelligence, were already rocked pretty badly by Tulsi Gabbard鈥檚 appointment to the position. And to see Pulte now nominated to it, I think may shake them even further. So I鈥檇 have to say I鈥檓 worried that we may see trusted partners, and we built up these relationships over decades, saying whether, saying it directly to us or just acting through, not providing information that we鈥檙e going to we鈥檙e going to lose information that could be very important to us.鈥�
What kind of access do you think he will have to sensitive intelligence information now?
鈥淲ell, in theory, he could have access to all of it because this is the top position in the intelligence community. And I think that also explains why already just within 24 hours of the announcement, you鈥檝e already had a number of Republicans in the Senate in particular, criticizing the nomination or saying in a somewhat subtle way they don鈥檛 think it ought to go anywhere. But using the acting route, Trump really doesn鈥檛 need approval from the Senate. But I think it鈥檚 something that has a lot of people disturbed on a bipartisan basis because of the lack of qualifications and the risk that fealty to Trump is the real qualification that he was seeking.鈥�
This interview was edited for clarity.
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