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Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tony Gilroy on the 'spooky' real-life parallels with Emmy nominee 'Andor'
'Andor' has been the "seminal creative experience" of Tony Gilroy's life. The filmmaker spent over five years steeped in the world of the 'Star Wars' prequel series, which follows resistance fighter Cassian Andor (portrayed by Diego Luna) during the nascent days of the Rebellion. On Tuesday, 'Andor' earned 14 Emmy nominations for its second and final season, including in the marquee race for drama series. 'It's hard to imagine that I'll ever be as deeply invested with as much and so submerged with so many people in such a huge endeavor,' Gilroy said via Zoom after the nominations announcement. 'It's a life experience as much as anything else. Everybody on this show really came away with a deeper sense of community and affection than they went in with.' Read more: Emmy nominations 2025: List of nominees In addition to drama series, 'Andor' was nominated for its directing, writing, cinematography, production design, costume, editing, score, original music, sound editing, sound mixing and special effects. Performances by Forest Whitaker (guest actor) and Alan Tudyk (character voice-over) were also recognized. A grounded, political spy thriller, 'Andor' is set during the five years leading up to the events of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars story,' the 2016 film on which Gilroy is credited as one of the writers. The series has been hailed by critics and audiences since its 2022 debut, captivating both longtime 'Star Wars' fans as well as those who don't know an Ewok from a Wookiee. The show's second season, which unfolds over the span of four years, provided key glimpses into the Galactic Empire's operations as well as the origins of the Rebel Alliance. And while the show is inspired by revolutions past, Gilroy admits it has been 'spooky' to see current events parallel moments from the show. In an interview with The Times, Gilroy discussed 'Andor's' nominations, real-life parallels and more. The conversation edited for length and clarity. Congratulations on the 14 nominations! How are you feeling? I'm trying to find a word that everybody you're calling doesn't use. I feel affirmed. It's very exciting, obviously. Where were you and what were you doing when you heard the news? I waited and I took a ride and took a shower and got out and saw my phone was hot. I waited to see if my phone was hot. Is there an 'Andor' group chat where you all can chat in a thread together? No. Well, maybe there is and I'm not on it. It's more text mania. Then you have to figure out who's on WhatsApp, who's on this, who's on that. Everybody's on different s—. It's actually really f— complicated, to be honest. Now I've got emails to answer, WhatsApps to answer. Read more: 'Star Wars' has always been a family saga. For 'Andor,' Tony Gilroy tapped his brothers What has it been like for you to be on this ride with this show as real-life events start to parallel what happened on the show? It feels like we're living through so much of it now. It's been spooky. We had to do a very interesting thing, I think, and figure out how to sell the show while this was all happening without us getting confused, or the world getting confused, or anything else. So I'm really proud. We went all around the world and really sold it really hard. It's hard to get a large audience to watch 'Star Wars' — it's strange, but it's really difficult. Along the way I think we managed through the relevancy and the politics of it as successfully as we could. I think now things are a little bit looser. We're a little bit more free with how we want to speak now so that's a little bit liberating. How hard is it to hold some of that in while you're trying to appeal to an audience? There wasn't anything really cynical about it. Everything we said was legit. The historical model is truly what we were doing, and we're not espousing an ideology in the show or anything like that. But we were also quite taken aback as things went along, at the amount of things that started rhyming with what was going on. Watching Sen. [Alex] Padilla get [handcuffed] while we're watching the Ghorman senate — there's things we did not expect to see lining up. It's really tough and it should be obvious what people think about it. One of the show's nominations was writing for Episode 9. Dan Gilroy, nominated! How does it feel to be able to share this moment with your brother? All three Gilroy brothers were nominated today! It's very pleasing to see that. There's so many things on here that really, really, really, make me smile. It's really great that [production designer] Luke [Hull] and [costume designer] Michael Wilkinson [were nominated]. All the technical things that came in for us today were really satisfying. All these awards are community property no matter how people talk about it. You know how many people it takes to stand behind every one of these episodes. They're just epic, the amount of people that are involved. As you're picking these individual episodes, how did Episode 9 stand out? What made it special for you? We were really torn about what to [submit]. We had three candidates that we really were really interested in. In the end, people felt — direction-wise — that the Ghorman massacre, Episode 8, was such a powerhouse. It's such a strong flavor and so memorable that we could not have that beat for direction. And we also felt that [Episode] 9, it's just so sophisticated. The spy writing and the sleekness of the politics and the sleekness of the storytelling in there and the scale of the issues for the characters that came up. That was always the favorite for script. Read more: Genevieve O'Reilly on Mon Mothma's pivotal 'Andor' speech: 'Her only weapon is her voice' Since you mention Ghorman, what was memorable about working on that episode for you? It's always an experiment to see if you're going to get the power out of things that you think you're going to get. [So,] to watch that expand beyond where we thought it was going to be, and to have it affect us, the people making it, more than we expected. To have the extras walk off the set on the final day of shooting, when they were finally released, all the people in that square after months and they went off singing the Ghorman national anthem on their own on the way out of Pinewood [Studios]. I'm very proud of it. That anthem is also nominated. That's really all I care about, Tracy. I've written a national anthem and it's been nominated for an Emmy. [Laughs.] Your time with 'Star Wars' is pretty much wrapped up. What has it been like for you, being steeped in this world for so long? 'Rogue [One]' aside, just being on this show the last five and a half, six years, this is the seminal creative experience, I'm imagining, of my life. It's hard to imagine that I'll ever be as deeply invested with as much and so submerged with so many people in such a huge endeavor. I can't imagine that will ever happen again. It's a life experience as much as anything else. Everybody on this show really came away with a deeper sense of community and affection than they went in with. To make a great show, and we're really proud of it, and to come away feeling the way that we feel about each other and what everybody did, I'm as proud of that as anything. How are you going to celebrate? I'm going to roll these calls and I'm going to go back to prepping the movie that I'm supposed to start shooting. I've got homework to do. I'm going to try and get an hour or two of work done before I go out for dinner with my wife. But I'll have an extra cherry in my old fashioned tonight. Get exclusive awards season news, in-depth interviews and columnist Glenn Whipp's must-read analysis straight to your inbox. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Daily Mail
15 minutes ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Emmy nominations 2025 dominated by Severance and The Studio with Michelle Williams and Kristen Bell getting nods
The nominations for the 77th Emmy Awards were announced on Tuesday morning. The list was shared by Harvey Guillén and Brenda Song in Los Angeles. CBS will air the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on September 14. Nate Bargatze is slated to host. Severance separated itself from the field with 27 Emmy nominations while The Studio led comedy nominees with 23 in a dominant year for Apple TV+. No other dramas came close to the dystopian workplace series Severance, which achieved a convergence of acclaim and audience buzz for its second season. Leading acting nominations came for Adam Scott and Britt Lower for what amounted to dual roles as their characters´ 'innie' work selves and 'outie' home selves. Tramell Tillman got a supporting nod for playing their tone-shifting, pineapple-wielding supervisor. Ben Stiller got a directing nomination. Apple TV+'s Hollywood satire The Studio was expected to make a big showing for its first season, but it romped over more established shows like Hacks, which got 14, and The Bear, which got 13. Scroll down for list of nominees... The Studio co-creator Seth Rogen personally got three nominations - for acting, writing and directing. Its A-list roster of guest stars brought in a bounty, with nominations for Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, Bryan Cranston, Anthony Mackie and Zoë Kravitz. The Penguin, HBO's dark drama from the Batman universe, was also surprisingly dominant in the limited series category with 24 nominations, including nods for leads Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti. Netflix´s acclaimed Adolescence got 13 nominations, including a supporting actor nod for 15-year-old Owen Cooper, who plays a 13-year-old suspected of a killing. Nominees for Drama Series were Andor, The Diplomat, The Last Of Us, Paradise, The Pitt, Severance, Slow Horses and The White Lotus. Best Comedy Series included Abbott Elementary, The Bear, Hacks, Nobody Wants This, Only Murders in the Building, Shrinking, The Studio and What We Do in the Shadows. Best Actor in a Drama Series were Sterling K. Brown for Paradise, Gary Oldman for Slow Horses, Pedro Pascal for The Last of Us, Adam Scott for Severance and Noah Wyle for The Pitt. The Penguin, HBO's dark drama from the Batman universe, was also surprisingly dominant in the limited series category with 24 nominations, including nods for leads Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti Lead Actress in a Drama Series included Kathy Bates for Matlock, Sharon Horgan for Bad Sisters, Britt Lower for Severance, Bella Ramsey for The Last of Us and Keri Russell for The Diplomat. Best Actress in a Comedy Series were Uzo Aduba in The Residence, Kristen Bell in Nobody Wants This, Quinta Brunson in Abbott Elementary, Ayo Edebiri in The Bear and Jean Smart in Hacks. Best Limited or Anthology Series were Adolescence, Black Mirror, Dying for Sex, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story and The Penguin. Outstanding supporting actor in a drama series were Zach Cherry for Severance, Walton Goggins for The White Lotus, Jason Isaacs for The White Lotus, James Marsden for Paradise, Sam Rockwell for The White Lotus, Tramell Tillman for Severance and John Turturro for Severance. Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series included Patricia Arquette for Severance, Carrie Coon for The White Lotus, Katherine LaNasa for The Pitt, Julianne Nicholson for Paradise, Parker Posey for The White Lotus, Natasha Rothwell for The White Lotus and Aimee Lou Wood for The White Lotus. Outstanding lead actress in a limited series or TV movie named Cate Blanchett for Disclaimer, Meghann Fahy for Sirens, Rashia Jones for Black Mirror, Cristin Milioti for The Penguin and Michelle Williams for Dying for Sex. Two categories were announced early on CBS Mornings. The nominees for talk series are The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The nominees for reality competition series are: The Amazing Race, RuPaul´s Drag Race, Survivor, Top Chef and The Traitors. Last year, the British Netflix production 'Baby Reindeer' was surprisingly dominant in the limited series categories. This year, it will surprise no one if the Netflix British crime drama 'Adolescence' does the same in the same categories. It was probably the most acclaimed show of the year. Fifteen-year-old Owen Cooper, who plays the 13-year-old accused of a killing at the center of the story, is likely to get one of several acting nominations. All the shows are living in the splintered world of the streaming era, and the like the Oscars its most acclaimed nominees rarely have the huge audience they once did. While an impressive average of 10 million people per episode watched Wyle on 'The Pitt' at some point on HBO Max, according to Warner Bros. Discovery, 30 years ago an average of 30 million sat down on the same night and watched him on 'ER' on NBC. EMMY AWARDS NOMINEES 2025 Drama Series Andor The Diplomat The Last Of Us Paradise The Pitt Severance Slow Horses The White Lotus Best Comedy Series Abbott Elementary The Bear Hacks Nobody Wants This Only Murders in the Building Shrinking The Studio What We Do in the Shadows Best Actress in a Comedy Series Uzo Aduba, The Residence Kristen Bell, Nobody Wants This Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary Ayo Edebiri, The Bear Jean Smart, Hacks Best Actor in a Comedy Series Adam Brody, Nobody Wants This Seth Rogen, The Studio Jason Segel, Shrinking Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building Jeremy Allen White, The Bear Outstanding Talk Series The Daily Show Jimmy Kimmel Live The Late Show With Stephen Colbert Reality Competition Program The Amazing Race RuPaul's Drag Race Survivor Top Chef The Traitors Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Zach Cherry, Severance Walton Goggins, The White Lotus Jason Isaacs, The White Lotus James Marsden, Paradise Sam Rockwell, The White Lotus Tramell Tillman, Severance John Turturro, Severance Outstanding supporting actress in a drama series Patricia Arquette, Severance Carrie Coon, The White Lotus Katherine LaNasa, The Pitt Julianne Nicholson, Paradise Parker Posey, The White Lotus Natasha Rothwell, The White Lotus Aimee Lou Wood, The White Lotus Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or TV movie Cate Blanchett, Disclaimer Meghann Fahy, Sirens Rashia Jones, Black Mirror Cristin Milioti, The Penguin Michelle Williams, Dying for Sex Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Javier Bardem, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story Bill Camp, Presumed Innocent Owen Cooper, Adolescence Rob Delaney, Dying for Sex Peter Sarsgaard, Presumed Innocent Ashley Walters, Adolescence Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Liza Colón-Zayas, The Bear Kathryn Hahn, The Studio Hannah Einbinder, Hacks Janelle James, Abbott Elementary Catherine O'Hara, The Studio Sheryl Lee Ralph, Abbott Elementary Jessica Williams, Shrinking
The Guardian
16 minutes ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
US university leaders challenge campus antisemitism claims in House hearing
Rich Lyons, the University of California, Berkeley, chancellor, challenged US House Republicans on Tuesday as they questioned Lyons and leaders of Georgetown University and the City University of New York in the latest hearing on antisemitism in higher education. The committee accused the schools of failing to respond adequately to allegations of bias or discrimination, however the university leaders said that disciplinary action had been taken where appropriate and stressed the importance of protecting free speech. Lyons pushed back on the suggestion that antisemitism was more present on college campuses than anywhere else. 'If somebody is expressing pro-Palestinian beliefs, that's not necessarily antisemitic,' he said. Lyons, in his first year as chancellor is also the first UC leader to face the House committee during the Trump presidency. In his opening remarks, he defended the campus' commitment to free speech. 'As a public institution, Berkeley has a solemn obligation to protect the quintessential American value of free speech,' Lyons said. 'This obligation does not prevent us, let me repeat, does not prevent us from confronting harassment and discrimination in all its forms, including antisemitism.' The hearing was the ninth in a series Republicans have held to scrutinize university leadership over allegations of antisemitism on campuses after a wave of protests over Israel's indiscriminate bombing of Gaza, which has killed more than 60,000 people, in retaliation to Hamas' 7 October 2023 attack on Israel. Widely criticized testimony before the committee by the presidents of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University in 2023 contributed to their resignations. At Tuesday's hearing, Democrats blasted Republican committee members for their focus on antisemitism while not speaking on the dismantling of the education department, which is tasked with investigating antisemitism and other civil rights violations in schools. 'They have turned this hearing room into a kangaroo court, where they spend our time litigating a predetermined outcome to do nothing, actually, to help Jewish students, just make public theater out of legitimate pain,' said the California representative Mark Takano. Republicans said university leaders have allowed campus antisemitism to run unchecked. 'Universities can choose to hire antisemitic faculty, welcome students with a history of antisemitism, accept certain foreign funding, and let the behavior of antisemitic unions go unchecked,' Tim Walberg, a Michigan representative and committee chair, said in his opening statements. 'But we will see today they do so at their own risk.' The hearing was periodically interrupted by protesters, who shouted pro-Palestinian slogans before being removed by Capitol police. Randy Fine, a Florida representative, berated the college presidents and said they were responsible because of the attitudes they had permitted on their campuses. Republicans pressed the three college leaders on whether they had disciplined or fired faculty and employees for behavior they said was antisemitic. Elise Stefanik, a Republican representative of New York, pressed the CUNY chancellor, Félix Matos Rodríguez, on the employment of a law professor who worked on the legal defense of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist the Trump administration attempted to deport over his role in protests at Columbia University. Stefanik pushed Matos Rodríguez to answer whether the professor should be fired. Without responding directly, Matos Rodríguez defended CUNY and said antisemitism had no place at the school. He said any student or employee who broke CUNY rules would be investigated. University leaders also emphasized the importance of free speech on campuses for students and faculty. Richard Groves, the interim president at Georgetown, said that as a Jesuit university, fostering interfaith dialogue and understanding was a key part of the school's mission. He said the university has not experienced any encampments or physical violence since the Hamas attack in October 2023. 'Given our Jesuit values, we expose students to different viewpoints on the Middle East,' Groves said. 'In addition to speakers on Gaza, we've hosted IDF soldiers, families of Israelis and Palestinians who've lost their lives. US families of US hostages in Gaza. Georgetown is not perfect, and as events evolve, we've had to clarify rules of student behavior.' Lyons, as well, said his campus has 'more work to do' to prevent antisemitism. 'I am the first to say that we have more work to do. Berkeley, like our nation, has not been immune to the disturbing rise in antisemitism. And as a public university, we have a solemn obligation to protect our community from discrimination and harassment, while also upholding the first amendment right to free speech,' he said.
Reuters
17 minutes ago
- Business
- Reuters
As class action trial looms, Meta and Flo could face 'mind-boggling' damages
July 15 (Reuters) - It's hard to imagine more intimate queries than those that fertility tracking app Flo allegedly asked its users. Among them: When was your last period? How often do you have sex? Masturbate? Do you get yeast infections? As app maker Flo Health and co-defendant Meta are set to face a class action trial in San Francisco federal court next week for allegedly violating the privacy of millions of Flo users, the question now is whether the companies will cut a deal or risk what Flo on appeal, opens new tab termed "mind-boggling" damages. Litigators sometimes bandy about the phrase 'bet-the-company case,' but this could be the real thing. Facebook parent Meta is defending against claims of violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act, which carries statutory penalties of $5,000 per violation. That would add up to at least $190 billion in damages if, as plaintiffs have previously suggested, opens new tab, there are 38 million class members. If each app entry is treated as a separate violation, total damages could be quadrillions of dollars — "a sum so large it may as well be infinite," as Flo put it. A spokesperson for Meta, which is represented by outside counsel from Latham & Watkins and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, said the plaintiffs' claims against the company "are simply false, and we are confident that the evidence at trial will demonstrate the realities." Flo, represented by Dechert, separately is dealing with claims including violations of California's Confidentiality of Medical Information Act, which carries penalties of $1,000 per violation. A spokesperson for the London-based, privately held company said Flo "is committed to protecting the privacy of its users, and any allegation otherwise has no merit." The companies have argued that Flo's privacy disclosures gave users notice of the alleged misconduct and that they impliedly consented, that the shared data did not contain personally identifying information and that Meta never 'intended' to intercept communications. According to the Meta spokesperson, the company does 'not want health or other sensitive information' and its terms 'prohibit developers from sending any.' Google, which was also named in the suit, reached a settlement in principle last week on as-yet undisclosed terms. A Google spokesperson did not respond to my request for comment. Given the risk of outsized verdicts (even those that don't involve 16 figures), class actions rarely go to trial. For example, Google last month took a chance on one involving cellular phone data, only to be hit with a $314 million verdict by a California jury on July 1. The Flo plaintiffs invoke California's 1967 invasion of privacy law, a Cold War relic that makes it illegal to covertly eavesdrop or record telephone conversations. As I previously wrote, the cause of action has enjoyed a resurgence of late among plaintiffs' lawyers, especially in connection with the use of chatbots, tracking pixels and other data analytics software. The Flo jury trial, set for July 21 before U.S. District Judge James Donato, looms as current and former Meta leaders face an $8 billion shareholder suit in Delaware that kicks off Wednesday. The shareholders allege Meta executives violated a 2012 agreement between Facebook and the Federal Trade Commission to protect users' data, my Reuters colleague Tom Hals reports. The Flo class action also has its roots in an FTC case. The agency sued Flo, opens new tab after The Wall Street Journal in 2019 reported that it was able to intercept identifying health information about Flo users transmitted by the app to Facebook. The FTC's 2021 settlement required Flo to obtain users' consent before sharing their health information and to notify affected women about the disclosure. According to the follow-on class action, opens new tab, which covers all Flo app users nationwide from Nov. 1, 2016, to Feb. 28, 2019, plus a California subclass, Flo integrated code from Meta and Google's software development kits, which are used for data analytics, into its app. That allegedly allowed the companies to review personal information on users' menstrual cycles, sex lives and pregnancies, despite promises by Flo that the data would remain confidential. The third parties were "were free to use this data for their own purposes," including marketing and advertising, the complaint alleges. "If Plaintiff and Class members had known that Flo Health would share their intimate health data, they would not have used the Flo App." Plaintiffs' lawyers from Labaton Keller Sucharow; Lowey Dannenberg and Spector Roseman & Kodroff did not respond to requests for comment. Donato certified the class in May, writing, opens new tab that the 'loss of control over one's personal information' is a concrete harm, "whether from stealing access to a personal diary in 1916 or obtaining user information in a healthcare app in 2016.' The decision prompted an interlocutory appeal, opens new tab in June by Flo to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Flo argued that Donato wrongly held that the company's class action waiver was unenforceable. The judge deemed the provision unconscionable because it was buried in Flo's terms of service. Flo also argued that the company's use of the software development kits is 'a practice as unremarkable as it is widespread,' and that it disclosed using the kits in its privacy policy and terms of service. Flo also said the transmitted data was de-identified, consisting of alphanumeric strings corresponding to the device on which the app was used. The appeals court in six-sentence order, opens new tab on June 17 denied Flo's petition and declined to stay the lower court proceedings. 'Cases of this magnitude almost never proceed to trial,' Flo noted in its appeal, describing the 'hydraulic pressure' to settle. I can only imagine. But if it does indeed go to trial, all I can say is, pass the popcorn.
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump accuses Schiff of mortgage fraud, which Schiff calls false 'political retaliation'
President Trump on Tuesday accused Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) of committing mortgage fraud by intentionally misleading lenders about his primary residence being in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., rather than California, in order to "get a cheaper mortgage and rip off America." 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. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox twice per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
