Trump accuses Schiff of mortgage fraud, which Schiff calls false 'political retaliation'
Schiff, who led a House impeachment of Trump during the president's first term and has remained one of his most vocal and forceful political adversaries since joining the Senate, dismissed the president's claims as a "baseless attempt at political retribution."
A spokesperson for Schiff said he has always been transparent about owning two homes, in part to be able to raise his children near him in Washington, and has always followed the law — and advice from House counsel — in arranging his mortgages.
In making his claims, Trump cited an investigation by the Fannie Mae "Financial Crimes Division" as his source.
A memorandum reviewed by The Times from Fannie Mae investigators to William J. Pulte, the Trump-appointed director of the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, does not accuse Schiff of mortgage fraud. It noted that investigators had been asked by the FHFA inspector general's office for loan files and "any related investigative or quality control documentation" for Schiff's homes.
Investigators said they found that Schiff at various points identified both his home in Potomac, Md., and a Burbank unit he also owns as his primary residence. As a result, they concluded that Schiff and his wife, Eve, "engaged in a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation" on their home loans between 2009 and 2020.
The investigators did not say they had concluded that a crime had been committed, nor did they mention the word "fraud" in the memo.
The memo was partially redacted to remove Schiff's addresses and information about his wife. Fannie Mae did not respond to a request for comment.
Read more: Fannie Mae memo on Sen. Adam Schiff's residences
In addition to denying any wrongdoing, Schiff also suggested that Trump's accusation was an effort to distract from a growing controversy — important to many in the president's MAGA base — over the administration's failure to disclose more investigative records into child sex abuse by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, a former acquaintance of Trump's.
There has long been rumors of a "client list" of Epstein's that could expose other powerful men as predators. Trump promised to release such a list as a candidate, and at one point Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi appeared to say such a list was on her desk. However, the administration has since said no such list exists, and Trump has begged his followers to move on.
Schiff drew a direct line between that controversy and Trump's accusations against him Tuesday.
"This is just Donald Trump's latest attempt at political retaliation against his perceived enemies. So it is not a surprise, only how weak this false allegation turns out to be," Schiff wrote on X. "And much as Trump may hope, this smear will not distract from his Epstein files problem."
A spokesperson for Schiff echoed the senator's denial of any wrongdoing.
According to the spokesperson, Schiff made a decision routine for Congress members from states far from Washington to buy a home in Maryland so he could raise his children nearby. He also maintained a home in California, living there when not in Washington.
The spokesperson said all of Schiff's lenders were aware that he intended to live in both as he traveled back and forth from Washington to his district — making neither a vacation home.
Read more: Schiff vs. Trump: The real head-to-head battle defining California's U.S. Senate race
Trump's own post about Schiff, on his social media platform, was thin on details and heavy on insults, calling Schiff "a scam artist" and "crook."
Trump alleged that Schiff reported his primary residence being in Maryland, when "he must LIVE in CALIFORNIA" as a congressman from the state.
Schiff, a former federal prosecutor, has for years laid out detailed arguments against the president — and for why his actions violated the law and warranted his permanent removal from office. Those have included Trump's first presidential campaign's interactions with Russian assets, his pressuring Ukraine to investigate his rival Joe Biden while U.S. military aid was being withheld from the country, and his incitement of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and storming of the U.S. Capitol to prevent the certification of Biden's 2020 electoral win over him.
Schiff also has criticized the president — and his businesses, family members and political appointees — for their own financial actions.
He recently sponsored legislation that would restrict the ability of politicians and their family members from getting rich off of digital currencies of their own creation, as Trump and his family have done. He also has repeatedly demanded greater financial transparency from various Trump appointees, accusing them of breaking the law by not filing disclosures of their assets within required time frames.
Others have accused Trump for years of financial fraud. Last year, a judge in New York ordered Trump to pay $355 million in penalties in a civil fraud case after finding that the president and others in his business empire inflated his wealth to trick banks and insurers. Trump denied any wrongdoing and has appealed the decision.
All along the way, Trump has attacked Schiff personally, accusing him of peddling hoaxes for political gain and repeatedly suggesting that he should be charged with treason. During a presidential campaign stop in California last year — when Schiff was running for Senate — Trump called Schiff "one of the sleaziest politicians in history."
Schiff made mention of Trump's treason claims in his response to the new allegation of mortgage fraud Tuesday, writing, "Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason. So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown."
Before leaving office, President Biden preemptively pardoned Schiff and the other members of the committee that investigated Trump's role in the Jan. 6 insurrection, anticipating that Trump would seek to retaliate against them for their work.
Schiff said at the time that he did not want a pardon. He later dismissed an assertion from Trump that the pardons were "void" as another attempt at intimidation.
Schiff was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2000. He now splits his time between a two-story home in Potomac, Md., which he bought in 2003, according to property records, and a one-bedroom condo in a shopping area in downtown Burbank, which he bought in 2009.
In 2023, amid a bruising primary race for his Senate seat, CNN reported on Schiff's two mortgages, citing experts who said the arrangement did not put Schiff in legal jeopardy — even if it could raise tough political questions.
CNN reported that deed records showed Schiff had designated his Maryland home as his primary residence, including while refinancing his mortgage over the years. In 2020, the outlet reported, Schiff again refinanced his mortgage and indicated that the Maryland home was his second.
CNN also reported that Schiff for years has taken a California homeowner's tax exemption for his Burbank home, also designating it as his primary address. CNN said that exemption amounted to "roughly $70 in annual savings." Schiff's spokesperson confirmed that estimate in annual savings in California, and noted that Schiff did not claim such an exemption in Maryland.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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