Tim Scott

Travis Gettys is a senior editor for Raw Story based in northern Kentucky. He previously worked as a web editor for WLWT-TV and a contributing writer for the Kentucky Enquirer, and he also wrote for the award-winning Sadly, No! blog. He has covered national, state and local politics, breaking news, criminal investigations and trials, sports and a variety of community issues, with a special emphasis on racial justice, right-wing extremism and gun safety.

One of Donald Trump’s most ubiquitous aides could be left to fend for himself if Democrats win Congress next month, according to a new report.

Bill Pulte, the 38-year-old director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has become “a constant presence” at Trump’s side, riding Air Force One to midterm rallies and pitching the president ideas on foam poster boards, but some of Trump’s own advisers are fed up, reported NBC News.

“He comes up with the weirdest ideas and is just always there to pitch them to the president. I don’t know why, but sometimes he listens,” a Trump adviser told NBC.

Those ideas have included a 50-year mortgage the administration later dropped, and turning the White House press briefing room into an in-ground swimming pool. Pulte was also the one who handed Trump the “Kennedy Center Demolished” poster board seen in a viral photo on Air Force One. A former official said Pulte has waited in the West Wing with posters to “intercept the president.”

If Democrats take power, Pulte’s own Republican allies don’t sound eager to defend him. A GOP congressional aide called him “low-hanging fruit” for Democrats to investigate and predicted Republicans won’t stand in the way.

“There are bigger problems than Bill Pulte,” the aide said. Even a Trump adviser conceded, “He’s obviously one that would have some problems.”

Democrats are already circling. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and other Democrats have asked Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) for a hearing with Pulte. They want to question him over criminal referrals alleging mortgage fraud against Trump foes, including Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), New York Attorney General Letitia James and Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook.

All three deny wrongdoing. FHFA wouldn’t say whether Pulte has referred any Republicans.

The Government Accountability Office is also investigating whether FHFA “misused federal authority and resources,” with findings expected in late 2026 or early 2027. Meanwhile, Pulte’s agency has slashed its inspector general’s budget, which the watchdog warned could force staff cuts of up to 80 percent.

“You have to question why he wants to get rid of the one person that holds him accountable,” Cortez Masto said.

Pulte has also clashed with his own side. He lobbied Trump to veto a bipartisan housing bill, while House Speaker Mike Johnson called the president almost nightly urging him against it. The president ultimately scrapped a planned signing ceremony just hours before it was set to begin, denying Republicans a rare pre-midterm win. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once testified that he’d threatened to “kick his a--.”

Trump, though, remains firmly in his corner.

“The president loves him, even if no one else does,” said a person familiar with their dynamic.

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