The president’s mortgages – fraud or no fraud?

The president’s mortgages – fraud or no fraud?

A second grand jury in Virginia has refused to indict New York attorney general Letitia James on mortgage fraud charges rebuffing the president’s efforts to bring retribution on some of his political enemies. To recap, James along with California senator Adam Schiff and Fed governor Lisa Cook had been accused of mortgage fraud. Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency uncovered documents indicated that James and the others had mortgage applications for second homes in which they said that the homes were to be primary residences which could be financed at lower interest rates than a secondary residence. James was the first to be brought before a grand jury in Norfolk, VA where the home was located. The grand jury did not indict because the judge ruled that the federal prosecutor, Lindsey Halligan once Trump’s personal lawyer, was illegally appointed to her position. Halligan was named by the president after he fired the US attorney for the eastern district of Virginia Erik Siebert who would not prosecute the case. Halligan then refiled the suit in Alexandria, VA. That the grand jury also refused to indict James.

Not being a lawyer, I presume that the “Justice” Department tried to indict James the second time because in Norfolk the case was dismissed on a technicality. Now that it has been thrown out again, does this mean that DOJ cannot file again? That would be a bad look. Usually a grand jury would indict a ham sandwich so the failure to indict in this case points to the weakness of the charges brought against James. I wonder if the statements by the president himself hurt the case. Recall he sent a note to his attorney general Pam Bondi that said “Pam: I have reviewed over 30 statements and posts saying that, essentially, ‘same old story as last time, all talk, no action. Nothing is being done. What about Comey, Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, Leticia??? They’re all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done.’” 

What will happen in the other cases? Will DOJ bring charges against Schiff and Cook? Well in an example of people in glass houses, one interesting tidbit has come to light. The president may himself have committed the same fraud on two residences bought near his Mar-a-Lago estate. Records show that in 1993, he signed a mortgage in Palm Beach, Fl, saying that the house would be his principal residence. Then seven weeks later, he did the same thing when he got another mortgage for a neighboring property saying that it too would be his principal residence. The real estate agent said that Trump never lived at either residence and from the beginning they were rental properties. Trump at the time was still a New York resident living in Trump Towers. As many have pointed out during the James and Cook accusations, that such a practice, while illegal, is common and seldom prosecuted. However the president himself said that regarding his enemies that the act was “deceitful and potentially criminal.” Oops.

On Cook, the president said “The American people must have the full confidence in the honesty of the members entrusted with setting policy and overseeing the Federal Reserve. In light of your deceitful and potentially criminal conduct in a financial matter, they cannot and I do not have such confidence in your integrity. I have determined that faithfully enacting the law requires your immediate removal from office.” If the allegations mean that he can fire Fed governor Cook “for cause” does this mean that he should fire himself? Don’t be silly. Of course not. Anyway the statute of limitations has expired in his case. 

The president has yet to respond while his White House translators stated “President Trump’s two mortgages you are referencing are from the same lender. There was no defraudation. It is illogical to believe that the same lender would agree to defraud itself. This is yet another desperate attempt by the Left wing media to disparage President Trump with false allegations. President Trump has never, or will ever, break the law.” Really? You decide.