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President Donald Trump's housing finance director, Bill Pulte, fired internal watchdogs at the Federal National Mortgage Association, Fannie Mae, who were looking into multiple complaints against a high-ranking company officer close to him, according to people familiar with the matter. Pulte said last month that he had fired dozens of Fannie Mae employees in what he said included a bid to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at the mortgage giant. Yet six people familiar with the matter said those firings effectively cleared out the company's internal watchdogs, charged with ensuring Fannie Mae and its officials follow the law. The ethics team -- including its chief, Suzanne Libby -- was fired shortly after Fannie management directed investigators to cease looking into the Pulte ally, said a couple of the people familiar with the situation. Other top Fannie Mae officials were also terminated amid broader clashes with Pulte, the people said, including general counsel Danielle McCoy and head of single-family business Malloy Evans. Some of the terminations were first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Libby, McCoy and Malloy did not respond to requests for comment. Now there are fewer independent voices at the government-backed company -- one of two that underpin the gigantic U.S. mortgage market -- to push back on Pulte's unpredictable and aggressive leadership style, ethics experts and people familiar with the matter said. Pulte's roles are wide-ranging: He runs the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees the U.S. mortgage market and controls Fannie Mae and its peer, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, or Freddie Mac. Pulte has overhauled the company boards and made himself chairman of both firms. On Monday morning, at least 200 additional Fannie employees were fired, according to two sources familiar with the terminations, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the move publicly. It was not immediately clear which staffers were fired or how they were selected. Pulte's actions and unpredictable policymaking style have also sowed uncertainty and undermined confidence in him from those across the housing finance industry at a crucial moment. The Trump administration is looking to take Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public -- since taking control of them during the 2008 housing crisis -- through what it says would be the largest public offering in history. Pulling that off would require a full-throated endorsement from major banks, investors, lenders and the financial markets. But multiple industry figures and housing finance experts say Pulte's time in office, and the recent firings of top Fannie officials, is eroding their faith in the firms' futures. In a statement, an FHFA spokesperson, who declined to be named, said the agency does "not comment on specific personnel matters, and certainly not fake news from disgruntled anonymous 'sources.'" The spokesperson added: "Housing finance markets are robust and liquid, we are following the law, and as reflected in recent earnings reports and cash balances, the companies are stronger than ever before." The White House did not respond to a request for comment. The ethics and compliance team specialized in cases related to internal fraud, abuse, insider trading, personnel matters, conflicts of interest, cyberthreats and employment law claims. When Pulte boasted last month that he had fired multiple people at Fannie Mae, he said it was part of his effort to purge the firm of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. "DEI HAS PASSED AWAY AT FANNIE MAE," he wrote on X. But people close to the company said the team was not focused on DEI. This fall, the team started looking into multiple complaints against a high-ranking officer close to Pulte, according to the people familiar with the probe. Initially, those cases followed normal protocols. But on Oct. 23, leadership within the investigations unit sent a message to the team directing them to stop looking into those matters, the people said. Soon after, another complaint came, claiming that Pulte had directed the firings of Libby and her team for investigating the ally, the people said. Relatively unknown before joining the Trump administration, Pulte has built tremendous influence since he was sworn in in March. He has also raised unproven claims of mortgage fraud against several of Trump's critics and adversaries. Accusations against Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, which she denies, prompted Trump to try to remove her from the central bank. The Justice Department has brought charges of mortgage fraud against New York Attorney General Letitia James. James also denies the accusations and has pleaded innocent. Pulte has also remained close with Trump, at one point handing him a draft letter to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom Pulte has repeatedly attacked on social media for not lowering interest rates. Information for this article was contributed by Doug MacMillan of The Washington Post.
