POLITICO: White House Blindsided and Furious After Pulte Pushed Trump Into 50-Year Mortgage Proposal

According to POLITICO, White House officials are furious with Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, who persuaded President Donald Trump to publicly float a 50-year mortgage plan without any internal vetting — triggering backlash from conservatives, business leaders, and lawmakers.

POLITICO reports that the White House was “blindsided” by the proposal, citing two people familiar with internal discussions. The controversy began Saturday evening when Pulte arrived at Trump’s Palm Beach Golf Club with a 3-by-5 posterboard comparing Franklin Roosevelt’s “30-year mortgage” to Trump’s proposed “50-year mortgage,” under the headline “Great American Presidents.”

Roughly ten minutes later, Trump posted the image on Truth Social. Within minutes, aides were fielding angry phone calls.

One person familiar with the meeting told the outlet:

“He just sold POTUS a bill of goods… He said ‘FDR did it, you can do it.’ But he didn’t tell him about all the unintended consequences.”

The episode, POLITICO writes, highlights how “haphazard” policymaking remains under Trump, and how Pulte frequently bypasses formal review procedures by pitching the president directly.

POLITICO adds that the fallout from this mortgage idea is “greater than almost any policy proposal of the second term,” with even MAGA influencers — Laura Loomer, Mike Cernovich, Christopher Rufo, Sean Davis, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene — denouncing the plan.

Trump attempted to downplay his own post on Fox News, saying:

“It’s not a big deal. All it means is you pay less per month… Pay it over a longer period of time.”

But economists and industry experts sharply disagreed. TD Securities strategist Gennadiy Goldberg told POLITICO the plan would slow equity-building and mostly increase interest payments, calling it a “stopgap bandaid.”

Pulte later defended himself on social media, saying 50-year mortgages were only one part of a “WIDE arsenal of solutions,” including portable and assumable mortgages.

A White House spokesperson shared that Trump remains focused on lowering housing costs and increasing supply. An FHFA spokesperson also defended Pulte, blaming the housing crisis on inflation during the Biden administration.

This is not Pulte’s first controversy. He was behind Trump’s earlier push to take Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public, which drew industry backlash, and he initiated mortgage-fraud allegations against Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook — allegations that became the basis for Trump firing her, a move now tied up in court.

Republicans in Congress have also grown frustrated with Pulte’s influence.

One senior official, speaking to POLITICO, said:

“Pulte doesn’t know the first f*ing thing about how mortgage markets operate… After publicly humiliating the president with his moronic 50-year mortgage plan, it’s safe to assume his days are numbered.”

Another source added that the MAGA backlash is the fiercest since the “Epstein Files” episode: “MAGA is furious.”

The National Association of Realtors also criticized the plan, saying 50-year mortgages would not fix housing affordability and would slow homebuyers’ ability to build equity.