Team Trump finds something new to weaponize: mortgage fraud allegations

[LetMyPeopleVote]

The Trump administration accused one of the president’s political targets of mortgage fraud. Then it happened again. And then it happened again.

Team Trump finds something new to weaponize: mortgage fraud allegations www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo... BEWARE OF ALLEGATIONS of MORTAGE FRAUD!!!

— Liberty & Justice (@stand4truth.bsky.social) 2025-08-21T18:54:59.094Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/team-trump-finds-something-new-weaponize-mortgage-fraud-allegations-rcna226381

Sometimes, there’s political news that’s notable at face value, but just below the surface there’s an even more important story happening. Take this NBC News report, for example:

The director of the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, William Pulte, a sharp critic of the Fed, alleged in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi that [Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook] ‘falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, potentially committing mortgage fraud.’ In the letter that Pulte called a ‘criminal referral,’ he said that his agency had obtained her mortgage documents and requested that the Justice Department review the matter.

Donald Trump, who is desperate to bring the Federal Reserve to heel, responded to the allegations with a four-word statement published to his social media platform: “Cook must resign, now!!!”.....

Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, told CNBC this week that the criminal referrals were not politically motivated. Perhaps. But given everything we know about Pulte, there is some reason for skepticism. The Washington Post recently noted that the FHFA chief “has made a name for himself as a prominent Trump sidekick.” From the article:

Pulte, 37, has ramped up political infighting. ... He’s become a leading voice for ousting Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome H. Powell, joining the president on a tour of the central bank and handing Trump a draft letter for Powell’s firing that — so far — remains unsent. He posts to social media constantly, like his boss in the Oval Office. ... Trump appears to be impressed. Last month, the president congratulated Pulte ‘on the outstanding job he is doing.’ In a post on Truth Social, he encouraged Pulte not to ‘LET THE RADICAL LEFT WEAKLINGS STOP YOU!’

All of which is to say, maybe we’re dealing with a story about a bunch of officials who’ve played fast and loose with their mortgage applications. Or maybe we’re dealing with a story about a federal bureaucracy being used in the service of a partisan vendetta.

[markodochartaigh]

1. Applying for a mortgage is one of the most complicated things

that most people do. It isn't surprising that there might be errors. And once Republicans find a way to take one person down they will use that tactic over and over.

In 2001 I heard stories from Muslim friends that the government was checking credit card applications as well as mortgage applications. If even a small inconsistency was noted people found themselves on an outbound flight very quickly.

[kirby]

2. Isn't there a statute of limitations for this BS?

[sop]

3. Trump was found liable in 2024 for fraudulently inflating the value of his properties to secure loans, insurance

and obtaining favorable terms from banks and insurers. Today an appeals court dismissed the $500 million civil fraud penalty against Trump, calling the fine "excessive," however the court upheld the original finding that Trump broke the law by inflating the value of his assets.

Now he's accusing others of mortgage fraud. As usual with Trump, every accusation is a confession.

[Johonny]

6. The appeals court simply let him walk

Even though the fine absolutely fit the crime. They could only prosecute the fraud Trump committed before the statute of limitations run out, but he essentially had like 40 year history of fraud that they uncovered. His conduct in the court room showed a man not only disrespecting the law, the court, but the concept of the law.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. Deadline: Legal Blog--Lisa Cook files suit against Trump's 'unprecedented and illegal' bid to fire her from Fed

Cook’s lawyers said Trump’s “unsubstantiated allegation” doesn’t satisfy the legal standard to remove her from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.

“NOT SO FAST…..”
Lisa Cook files suit against Trump’s ‘unprecedented and illegal’ bid to fire her from Fed.
www.msnbc.com/deadline-whi...

— NOT SO FAST, KIMOSABE!! (@smokedoyster.bsky.social) 2025-08-28T16:09:49.120Z

https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/lisa-cook-trump-firing-lawsuit-federal-governor-rcna227729

Lisa Cook has filed her lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s attempt to remove her from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. In her federal court complaint, Cook’s lawyers called Trump’s move “unprecedented and illegal,” arguing that his “unsubstantiated allegation” of mortgage fraud doesn’t meet the legal requirement of showing cause to remove her.

In the complaint filed Thursday in Washington, D.C., they cite the Federal Reserve Act’s mandate that presidents can only remove board members “for cause” prior to the expiration of their term. Cook’s term expires in 2038. She was nominated by then-President Joe Biden......

Her complaint highlights the significance of how that test is resolved. “The operational independence of the Federal Reserve is vital to its ability to make sound economic decisions, free from the political pressures of an election cycle,” her lawyers wrote, warning that “f markets and the public believe that the central bank is making decisions based on political pressure rather than sound economic data, that confidence erodes.”

The next step in Cook’s case could come quickly. Her lawyers moved for a temporary restraining order and requested an emergency hearing. “Without emergency relief,” they wrote, “[federal government] Defendants are now likely to allow an unexpired vacancy to occur for which President Trump has indicated he is ready to fill.”

Here is a link to the complaint https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270/gov.uscourts.dcd.284270.1.0_17.pdf

[LetMyPeopleVote]

5. When will trump/bondi prosecute Ken Paxton