The Wall Street Journal reports:

Bill Pulte marched into the Oval Office this summer and delivered one of his signature performances.

Pulte, who heads the Federal Housing Finance Agency, told the president he had identified leakers who were undermining the administration. He was carrying a “Ghostbusters”-style poster that featured pictures of administration officials and outside allies, outlined by red circles with lines through their faces, according to officials familiar with the meeting.

For many in the West Wing, it was classic Pulte: an attention-grabbing move to burrow into President Trump’s good graces by attacking the president’s perceived enemies.

Pulte, a 37-year-old heir to a home-building fortune, has emerged as one of the most polarizing figures inside and outside the Trump administration. Referred to by some as “Little Trump,” his job is to oversee mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which back nearly half the mortgages in the country.

Pulte has routinely made waves from that low-profile post, digging up opposition research on the president’s foes, ousting legal and ethics watchdogs who investigated the FHFA director’s conduct, and lashing out at companies in the housing world. Most recently, he has championed the idea of introducing a 50-year mortgage in the U.S.—a proposal that got a cool reception in Washington, even from many on the right.

Some administration officials have grown wary of Pulte’s unorthodox and aggressive tactics and have been gathering information on what they see as his missteps and political vulnerabilities, building on the vetting they did before he got the job, people familiar with the situation said.

Those officials believe Pulte has veered outside his lane, creating headaches for the administration. They have pushed the president to replace him, but Trump has resisted, telling confidants he appreciates Pulte’s loyalty, the people said.

Like many people in the president’s orbit, Pulte enhanced his standing via a pricey membership at Trump’s Palm Beach, Fla., resort Mar-a-Lago. The grandson of William J. Pulte, who had founded home-builder giant PulteGroup, the younger Pulte left the company’s board in 2020 after disagreements with other directors. He led a private-equity firm and focused on social-media philanthropy, in which he would donate to his followers.

Pulte and his wife donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to pro-Trump groups in recent campaign cycles. After Trump’s 2024 election victory, Pulte was spotted dining at Mar-a-Lago with longtime Trump ally Roger Stone. Pulte also developed a relationship with the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., though he doesn’t consider himself to be a close friend of Pulte. [Continue reading…]