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President Donald Trump launched a blistering attack on Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Tuesday morning, amplifying 2024 claims that Schiff committed mortgage fraud by lying about his primary residence for over a decade, which the senator denies.
Trump, in a Truth Social post, labeled Schiff a “scam artist” and claimed he obtained a mortgage for a residence in Maryland in 2009 but only designated it as a second home in 2020 as part of a ruse to snag better rates and terms from the company, which has been in federal conservatorship since the 2008 financial crisis.
The president said Fannie Mae’s Financial Crimes Division had uncovered the alleged fraud. Schiff obtained the Maryland property in 2009 while he was a congressman and became a senator in January. Schiff called the accusations “baseless.”
The president claims Schiff falsified primary residence documents for over a decade to secure better mortgage rates. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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“I have always suspected Shifty Adam Schiff was a scam artist. And now I learn that Fannie Mae’s Financial Crimes Division have concluded that Adam Schiff has engaged in a sustained pattern of possible Mortgage Fraud,” Trump wrote.
“Adam Schiff said that his primary residence was in MARYLAND to get a cheaper mortgage and rip off America, when he must LIVE in CALIFORNIA because he was a Congressman from CALIFORNIA. I always knew Adam Schiff was a Crook. The FRAUD began with the refinance of his Maryland property on February 6, 2009, and continued through multiple transactions until the Maryland property was correctly designated as a second home on October 13, 2020.”
“Mortgage Fraud is very serious, and CROOKED Adam Schiff (now a Senator) needs to be brought to justice.”
Trump did not provide any evidence of the alleged fraud.
When asked about the accusations later on Tuesday, Trump appeared to soften on the specific accusation.
“I don’t know about the individual charge, if that even happened, but Adam Schiff is a serious lowlife,” Trump said.
“When you said that you want Adam Schiff brought to justice, what does that mean?” Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked, to which Trump said: “I’d love to see him brought to justice.”
President Trump launched a blistering attack on Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Tuesday morning, accusing his longtime political foe of committing mortgage fraud by lying about his primary residence for over a decade in order to “rip off America.” (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
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Schiff was not barred from listing the Maryland home as his primary residence during his term in Congress, since the Constitution only requires that he be an “inhabitant” of California at the time of his election, not throughout his entire service.
However, Schiff cited two residences, one in California and one in Maryland, as his “principal residence” on multiple mortgage and election forms dating back to 2003, Just the News reported in October.
In at least three cases — in 2009, 2011 and 2013 — Schiff refinanced his Maryland home and declared it his “principal residence,” while also listing his Burbank, California condo as his primary residence in separate financing documents, the outlet reported. He then changed the notations on his Maryland mortgage to be a secondary residence.
The pattern was first detected by Christine Bish, a Sacramento-based real estate investigator who ran for Congress as a Republican last year. She filed an ethics complaint against Schiff in Congress.
Schiff said Trump’s comments were the latest attempt at political retaliation against his perceived enemies and said it would not distract from “his Epstein files problem.”
“Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason,” Schiff wrote on X. “So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown. And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot.”
A spokesperson for Schiff said that the accusations have been debunked.
“The lenders who provided the mortgages for both homes were well aware of then-Representative Schiff’s Congressional service and of his intended year-round use of both homes, neither of which were vacation homes,” the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “He has always been completely transparent about this.”
The spokesperson did not say whether the Maryland home was designated as a primary residence. Fannie Mae said it would not be commenting on the claims.
Then House impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., holds redacted documents as he speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Jan. 22, 2020. (Senate Television via AP)
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Trump and Schiff have clashed many times since Trump first became president.
As ranking member and later chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff became the public face of the congressional probe into the now-debunked theory that Trump colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election. Schiff repeatedly suggested there was “ample evidence” of collusion, even when the Mueller report later stated it did not establish a criminal conspiracy. Trump and his Republican allies repeatedly accused Schiff of leaking classified information during the investigation.
Schiff also served as the lead House impeachment manager during Trump’s first impeachment trial, stemming from the president’s phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy while Schiff was also a member of the House Select Committee on Jan. 6, which investigated Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol. Schiff voted to impeach Trump both times.