In “yet another deeply alarming appointment,” President Donald Trump has picked major Trump campaign donor Bill Pulte to replace former Congressmember Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence, the nation’s top spy chief who reports directly to the president. Pulte is “not somebody who has any of the requisite experience for this incredibly important office,” says Matt Platkin, a former attorney general for New Jersey. Pulte is also expected to continue in his other high-level positions as chair of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and chair of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) and director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, where he is accused of abusing his power to pursue political prosecutions against Trump’s enemies.
We also speak to Harvard Law School professor Nancy Gertner, a retired federal judge, about legal challenges to Trump’s mass deportation campaign, particularly involving widespread abuses committed by DHS and ICE. “What we’re seeing now is an effort for the courts to catch up to those abuses, and they are. Legislation is going to be needed to make this even more clear,” says Gertner.
This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.