alternet--2020-10-01--Federal law enforcement officials directed to defend Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse: Leaked DHS me

Federal law enforcement officials directed to defend Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse: Leaked DHS memo

Internal documents reportedly suggest federal law enforcement officials with the Department of Homeland Security were directed to maintain a publicly sympathetic stance regarding Kyle Rittenhouse — the 17-year-old facing murder charges for the fatal shootings of protesters in Kenosha , Wisc .
In preparation for questions from the media regarding the highly publicized shootings , DHS officials were advised to focus on focus on Rittenhouse 's initial efforts , according to NBC News .
The document , which included multiple talking points regarding the case , advised officials to suggest Rittenhouse `` took his rifle to the scene of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
A different set of talking points distributed to officials also discussed the media 's depiction of the group , Patriot Prayer .
While the media is said to have labeled the group as `` racist '' following their clash with protesters amid civil unrest in Portland , Ore. , DHS officials were reportedly told to dismiss the claims .
It remains unclear whether or not the directives came from the White House but President Donald Trump has shown support for Rittenhouse and law enforcement .
Now , multiple former Homeland Security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of internal affairs at the government agency .
Peter Boogaard , who served as a spokesperson for Homeland Security under the Obama administration , condemned the reports .
`` It is as unprecedented as it is wrong , '' Boogaard said .
Elizabeth Neumann , who served as DHS 's assistant secretary for threat prevention and security policy in the Trump administration , also pointed out one important suggestion that did not appear to be highlighted in the internal talking points .
`` What strikes me about the talking points is that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public , '' Neumann said .
`` Even in the early hours after the incident , it was known private militias had self-deployed .
…They seemed more interested in Rittenhouse 's reputation than calling for calm and actual law and order . ''
The latest regarding Kyle Rittenhouse follows multiple reports about the staggering number of donations he has received through fundraising efforts sphere headed by a Christian crowdfunding website .
According to Rittenhouse 's lawyer , the Christian has received more than $ 1 million in donations from more than 11,000 donors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ total of $ 605,550 had been donated to the FightBack Foundation for Rittenhouse 's legal fund .
Another $ 534,000 had also been donated to Rittenhouse through the Christian fundraising platform GiveSendGo .
However , all funds will ultimately be transferred to the FightBack Foundation .

Internal documents reportedly suggest federal law enforcement officials with the Department of Homeland Security were directed to maintain a publicly sympathetic stance regarding Kyle Rittenhouse — the 17-year-old facing murder charges for the fatal shootings of protesters in Kenosha, Wisc.
In preparation for questions from the media regarding the highly publicized shootings, DHS officials were advised to focus on focus on Rittenhouse's initial efforts, according to NBC News. The document, which included multiple talking points regarding the case, advised officials to suggest Rittenhouse "took his rifle to the scene of the rioting to help defend small business owners."
A different set of talking points distributed to officials also discussed the media's depiction of the group, Patriot Prayer. While the media is said to have labeled the group as "racist" following their clash with protesters amid civil unrest in Portland, Ore., DHS officials were reportedly told to dismiss the claims.
It remains unclear whether or not the directives came from the White House but President Donald Trump has shown support for Rittenhouse and law enforcement.
Now, multiple former Homeland Security officials have expressed concern about the handling of internal affairs at the government agency. Peter Boogaard, who served as a spokesperson for Homeland Security under the Obama administration, condemned the reports.
"It is as unprecedented as it is wrong," Boogaard said.
Elizabeth Neumann, who served as DHS's assistant secretary for threat prevention and security policy in the Trump administration, also pointed out one important suggestion that did not appear to be highlighted in the internal talking points.
"What strikes me about the talking points is that they didn't call for calm among the public," Neumann said. "Even in the early hours after the incident, it was known private militias had self-deployed. …They seemed more interested in Rittenhouse's reputation than calling for calm and actual law and order."
The latest regarding Kyle Rittenhouse follows multiple reports about the staggering number of donations he has received through fundraising efforts sphere headed by a Christian crowdfunding website. According to Rittenhouse's lawyer, the Christian has received more than $1 million in donations from more than 11,000 donors.
There will be total transparency on part of #FightBack Foundation.
To date, 11,254 donors have donated total of $605,550 toward the Foundation's efforts to fund defense of Kyle Rittenhouse & help support & protect his family.
$0 from @Microsoft@Apple@BankofAmerica@MLBhttps://t.co/T8UH1r2A1J
— Lin Wood (@LLinWood) September 1, 2020
As of Monday night, a total of $605,550 had been donated to the FightBack Foundation for Rittenhouse's legal fund. Another $534,000 had also been donated to Rittenhouse through the Christian fundraising platform GiveSendGo. However, all funds will ultimately be transferred to the FightBack Foundation.


alternet--2020-10-01--Even in deep red South Carolina, Biden has become shockingly competitive: analysis

While North Carolina is a swing state that has a Democratic governor , Roy Cooper , and went for President Barack Obama in 2008 , South Carolina has been a deep red state .
Pundits have consistently described North Carolina as being in play for former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election , but they have n't been saying that about South Carolina — until now .
A Quinnipiac poll finds President Donald Trump ahead of Biden by only 1 % in South Carolina .
And this comes at a time when South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his career .
When Democrat Jaime Harrison took on Graham — who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee — in South Carolina 's 2020 U.S. Senate race , the word `` longshot '' was often used to describe his campaign .
Harrison himself acknowledged that he was fighting an uphill battle given how conservative South Carolina is known for being .
A Democrat has n't won a U.S. Senate race in South Carolina since 1998 , and the last Democratic presidential nominee who won South Carolina 's electoral votes was Jimmy Carter in 1976 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton by 14 % in South Carolina .
But Harrison has turned out to be shockingly competitive in South Carolina .
Quinnipiac 's most recent poll on South Carolina 's U.S. Senate race finds Graham and Harrison in a dead heat .
And that poll was not an outlier .
Polls released during the second half of September found Harrison either trailing Graham by only 1 % ( Morning Consult ) or leading by 1 % ( YouGov ) or 2 % ( Brilliant Corners Research ) .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by only 1 % in South Carolina might be the former vice president 's best so far in that state , although Biden 's performance in other recent polls has been decent in light of how deeply Republican South Carolina is .
Polls released during the second half of September found Trump ahead of Biden in South Carolina by 4 % ( Data for Progress ) or 6 % ( Morning Consult ) .
Considering Trump 's 14 % victory in South Carolina in 2016 , it 's easy to make an argument @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if he ultimately wins the state again .
The battle for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg 's seat on the U.S. Supreme Court could be a factor in South Carolina 's races .
As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee , Graham is aggressively pushing for Trump 's far-right nominee , Judge Amy Coney Barrett , to be confirmed by the Senate before the presidential election — which is a major flip-flop on Graham 's part .
In the past , he promised that if a Supreme Court seat became available in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ until after the election to vote on a nominee .
Graham 's flip-flop is obviously designed to strengthen his support among far-right white evangelicals , but it is also firing up his Democratic critics .
During a Fox News appearance on September 24 , Graham sounded downright panicked when he discussed Harrison 's impressive Democratic fundraising operation and told host Ainsley Earhardt , `` I 'm being killed financially .
This money is because they hate my guts . ''
Tim Malloy , a polling analyst for Quinnipiac , discussed the fact that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they are in South Carolina .
South Carolina 's The State quotes Malloy as saying , `` I would say the president is truly on the ropes right now… .
Lindsey Graham is being challenged like he 's never been before , which means he 's not terribly popular .
Lindsey Graham is close to the president .
He speaks to the president often ; so , it 's probably no coincidence that both of them simultaneously have lost enough ground to be challenged . ''

While North Carolina is a swing state that has a Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, and went for President Barack Obama in 2008, South Carolina has been a deep red state. Pundits have consistently described North Carolina as being in play for former Vice President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, but they haven't been saying that about South Carolina — until now. A Quinnipiac poll finds President Donald Trump ahead of Biden by only 1% in South Carolina. And this comes at a time when South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is facing the toughest reelection fight of his career.
When Democrat Jaime Harrison took on Graham — who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee — in South Carolina's 2020 U.S. Senate race, the word "longshot" was often used to describe his campaign. Harrison himself acknowledged that he was fighting an uphill battle given how conservative South Carolina is known for being. A Democrat hasn't won a U.S. Senate race in South Carolina since 1998, and the last Democratic presidential nominee who won South Carolina's electoral votes was Jimmy Carter in 1976. Trump, in 2016, defeated Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton by 14% in South Carolina.
But Harrison has turned out to be shockingly competitive in South Carolina. Quinnipiac's most recent poll on South Carolina's U.S. Senate race finds Graham and Harrison in a dead heat. And that poll was not an outlier. Polls released during the second half of September found Harrison either trailing Graham by only 1% (Morning Consult) or leading by 1% (YouGov) or 2% (Brilliant Corners Research).
The new Quinnipiac poll showing Biden trailing Trump by only 1% in South Carolina might be the former vice president's best so far in that state, although Biden's performance in other recent polls has been decent in light of how deeply Republican South Carolina is. Polls released during the second half of September found Trump ahead of Biden in South Carolina by 4% (Data for Progress) or 6% (Morning Consult). Considering Trump's 14% victory in South Carolina in 2016, it's easy to make an argument that he is underperforming there — even if he ultimately wins the state again.
The battle for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat on the U.S. Supreme Court could be a factor in South Carolina's races. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Graham is aggressively pushing for Trump's far-right nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, to be confirmed by the Senate before the presidential election — which is a major flip-flop on Graham's part. In the past, he promised that if a Supreme Court seat became available in 2020, he would want to wait until after the election to vote on a nominee.
Graham's flip-flop is obviously designed to strengthen his support among far-right white evangelicals, but it is also firing up his Democratic critics. During a Fox News appearance on September 24, Graham sounded downright panicked when he discussed Harrison's impressive Democratic fundraising operation and told host Ainsley Earhardt, "I'm being killed financially. This money is because they hate my guts."
Tim Malloy, a polling analyst for Quinnipiac, discussed the fact that Biden and Harrison are as competitive as they are in South Carolina.
South Carolina's The State quotes Malloy as saying, "I would say the president is truly on the ropes right now…. Lindsey Graham is being challenged like he's never been before, which means he's not terribly popular. Lindsey Graham is close to the president. He speaks to the president often; so, it's probably no coincidence that both of them simultaneously have lost enough ground to be challenged."


alternet--2020-10-01--‘Women didn’t like that’: Fox News host grills GOP chairwoman after Trump interrupts ‘145 times’ at

‘Women didn’t like that’: Fox News host grills GOP chairwoman after Trump interrupts ‘145 times’ at debate

Fox News host Sandra Smith pressed Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel on Thursday over the idea that President Donald Trump could be punished with a `` mute button '' after he repeatedly interrupted Democratic candidate Joe Biden at Tuesday 's presidential debate .
During an interview on Fox News , Smith noted that the Commission on Presidential Debates is considering changing the rules due to the constant interruptions at the first debate between Biden and Trump .
`` At any point when you were watching the debate , did you wish that perhaps President Trump did n't jump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ? ''
Smith wondered .
`` I actually wanted him to keep asking him about stacking the Supreme Court , '' McDaniel replied .
`` But to that point about the interruptions , '' Smith interrupted .
`` Did you ever think , that 's too much ? ''
`` Joe Biden was interrupting the president just as much , '' McDaniel claimed falsely .
`` It was the back and forth . ''
`` But I 'm asking you a question that you 're not answering , '' Smith countered .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think it would be better for your party , better for the Trump campaign to not have jumped in as much as he did ? ''
`` Many women did n't like that , '' the Fox News host continued .
`` They did n't like the aggressiveness that they saw on the stage . ''
`` At any point , I 'm asking you , Ronna , did you wish the president did n't jump in as much ? ''
she asked .
`` I 'm speaking as a female voter , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to see the president to force Joe Biden to answer these questions .
I really wanted Chris Wallace to do it and I was glad to see the president do it . ''
Smith went on to point to a recent Monmouth University national poll that found Biden leads Trump 57 % to 38 % among women voters .
For her part , McDaniel asserted that `` a lot '' of Trump 's debate performance appealed to women .
Smith reminded McDaniel that Trump had more than twice as many interruptions as Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interruptions , our Brain Room dug into exactly how many interruptions there were on the part of both candidates , '' Smith remarked .
`` In total , Biden , 67 times .
President Trump , 145 times .
You can tally it up and you can see there were more interruptions . ''
`` Would you support a mute button ? ''
Smith wanted to know .
`` These are grown men , '' McDaniel insisted .
`` They can handle each other . ''
Watch the video below from Fox News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : 'Would you support a mute button ' on Trump ?

Fox News host Sandra Smith pressed Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel on Thursday over the idea that President Donald Trump could be punished with a "mute button" after he repeatedly interrupted Democratic candidate Joe Biden at Tuesday's presidential debate.
During an interview on Fox News, Smith noted that the Commission on Presidential Debates is considering changing the rules due to the constant interruptions at the first debate between Biden and Trump.
"At any point when you were watching the debate, did you wish that perhaps President Trump didn't jump in there as much as he did?" Smith wondered.
"I actually wanted him to keep asking him about stacking the Supreme Court," McDaniel replied.
"But to that point about the interruptions," Smith interrupted. "Did you ever think, that's too much?"
"Joe Biden was interrupting the president just as much," McDaniel claimed falsely. "It was the back and forth."
"But I'm asking you a question that you're not answering," Smith countered. "Did at any point, did you think it would be better for your party, better for the Trump campaign to not have jumped in as much as he did?"
"Many women didn't like that," the Fox News host continued. "They didn't like the aggressiveness that they saw on the stage."
"At any point, I'm asking you, Ronna, did you wish the president didn't jump in as much?" she asked.
"I'm speaking as a female voter," McDaniel said. "I wanted to see the president to force Joe Biden to answer these questions. I really wanted Chris Wallace to do it and I was glad to see the president do it."
Smith went on to point to a recent Monmouth University national poll that found Biden leads Trump 57% to 38% among women voters.
"Doesn't that concern you?" Smith pressed.
For her part, McDaniel asserted that "a lot" of Trump's debate performance appealed to women.
Smith reminded McDaniel that Trump had more than twice as many interruptions as Biden.
"When you look at the interruptions, our Brain Room dug into exactly how many interruptions there were on the part of both candidates," Smith remarked. "In total, Biden, 67 times. President Trump, 145 times. You can tally it up and you can see there were more interruptions."
"Would you support a mute button?" Smith wanted to know.
"These are grown men," McDaniel insisted. "They can handle each other."
Watch the video below from Fox News.


alternet--2020-10-01--‘Never has American politics sunk so low’: US viewed as a country in serious decline

Americans were n't the only ones who watched the United States ' chaotic presidential debate on Tuesday night , September 29 .
President Donald Trump 's ranting during the debate has been a topic of discussion all over the world , and a question that many of the United States ' democratic allies — from France to Australia to Japan — have been asking is : what is happening to the U.S. ?
The fact that the United States ' image is suffering so badly during the Trump era is the theme of articles for the BBC and Financial Times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the reaction that other democracies have had to the September 29 presidential debate , journalist Edward Luce 's piece ( which is headlined `` America 's Bleeding Democratic Image '' ) warns that other countries fear the U.S. is facing a `` constitutional crisis . ''
A long list of pundits at MSNBC and CNN have described Trump 's debate performance as a total embarrassment , and the BBC reports that observers in Germany , Italy , the U.K. and other countries share that view .
In France , the BBC notes , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , childish , grueling '' by Libération and as a `` terrible storm '' by Le Monde .
France 's Le Figaro spoke highly of Trump 's Democratic opponent , Joe Biden , saying that the former vice president was able to `` put ( Trump ) on the defensive . ''
In the U.K. , The Guardian said of the debate , `` The rest of the world — and future historians — will presumably look at it and weep '' and argued that Biden was the only one who looked `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
If Trump is reelected in November , according to The Guardian , `` This dark , horrifying , unwatchable fever dream will surely be the first line of America 's obituary . ''
Comments in major Italian publications were equally depressing .
Il Corriere della Sera described Trump 's refusal to condemn white nationalism during the debate as `` a message for Black America '' — and not a good one .
And La Repubblica said of il dibattito , `` Never had American politics sunk so low . ''
To hear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it , the U.S. president is respected and revered all over the democratic world — which is absolute nonsense .
Russian President and the Kremlin are hoping for a Trump victory in November , but in most of Europe , the U.S. is widely viewed as a country that is in serious decline .
In Financial Times , Luce ( who is British but not lives in Washington , D.C. ) explains , `` Some of America 's declining reputation can be measured .
The Pew Research Center recently found that fewer than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a favorable view of America .
At 41 % favorable , Britain 's view of the U.S. was a record low .
Mr. Trump 's impact is even more stark : just 16 % of the world trusts America 's president to do the right thing — even lower than the 19 % who thought that about China 's Xi Jinping .
Germany 's Angela Merkel got a 76 % positive rating .
The surveys were carried out well before this week 's presidential debate . ''
Luce laments that `` U.S. politics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its former self , '' adding that the United States ' `` democratic brand is in freefall . ''
One of the main reasons why the United States ' reputation has suffered so badly , Luce notes , is its response to the coronavirus pandemic — which has killed more than 1 million people worldwide , according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore , and more than 206,000 people in the U.S. Luce points out that the U.S. has a `` 28 % higher death rate '' than Europe during the pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , served as a grim reminder that the U.S. is at risk for a `` constitutional crisis . ''
Trump , Luce pointed out , refused to say that he will accept the election results if he loses to Biden .
`` This week , the world witnessed a new low in America 's political culture , '' Luce explains .
`` If the country is lucky , it will escape a constitutional crisis in November .
Mr. Biden 's poll lead has been sufficiently stable to explain why Mr. Trump was even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ His intemperate performance may even have cemented his defeat ; post-debate polls suggest Mr. Trump 's tactics backfired .
But his worsening prospects make him even more dangerous . ''
Luce also laments that even if Biden wins , the U.S. is `` likely to be consumed by divisions for the foreseeable future . ''
According to Luce , `` Biden would be more predictable than Mr. Trump , while lacking the means to restore U.S. primacy .
Mr. Biden could stop America 's internal bleeding .
That is ambitious enough .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bet on more than that . ''

Americans weren't the only ones who watched the United States' chaotic presidential debate on Tuesday night, September 29. President Donald Trump's ranting during the debate has been a topic of discussion all over the world, and a question that many of the United States' democratic allies — from France to Australia to Japan — have been asking is: what is happening to the U.S.?
The fact that the United States' image is suffering so badly during the Trump era is the theme of articles for the BBC and Financial Times. While the BBC's report examines the reaction that other democracies have had to the September 29 presidential debate, journalist Edward Luce's piece (which is headlined "America's Bleeding Democratic Image") warns that other countries fear the U.S. is facing a "constitutional crisis."
A long list of pundits at MSNBC and CNN have described Trump's debate performance as a total embarrassment, and the BBC reports that observers in Germany, Italy, the U.K. and other countries share that view. In France, the BBC notes, the debate was described as "chaotic, childish, grueling" by Libération and as a "terrible storm" by Le Monde. France's Le Figaro spoke highly of Trump's Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, saying that the former vice president was able to "put (Trump) on the defensive."
In the U.K., The Guardian said of the debate, "The rest of the world — and future historians — will presumably look at it and weep" and argued that Biden was the only one who looked "remotely presidential" on the debate stage. If Trump is reelected in November, according to The Guardian, "This dark, horrifying, unwatchable fever dream will surely be the first line of America's obituary."
Comments in major Italian publications were equally depressing. Il Corriere della Sera described Trump's refusal to condemn white nationalism during the debate as "a message for Black America"— and not a good one. And La Repubblica said of il dibattito, "Never had American politics sunk so low."
To hear Trump's supporters at Fox News tell it, the U.S. president is respected and revered all over the democratic world — which is absolute nonsense. Russian President and the Kremlin are hoping for a Trump victory in November, but in most of Europe, the U.S. is widely viewed as a country that is in serious decline.
In Financial Times, Luce (who is British but not lives in Washington, D.C.) explains, "Some of America's declining reputation can be measured. The Pew Research Center recently found that fewer than a third of French and Germans had a favorable view of America. At 41% favorable, Britain's view of the U.S. was a record low. Mr. Trump's impact is even more stark: just 16% of the world trusts America's president to do the right thing — even lower than the 19% who thought that about China's Xi Jinping. Germany's Angela Merkel got a 76% positive rating. The surveys were carried out well before this week's presidential debate."
Luce laments that "U.S. politics has degenerated into a macabre shadow of its former self," adding that the United States' "democratic brand is in freefall."
One of the main reasons why the United States' reputation has suffered so badly, Luce notes, is its response to the coronavirus pandemic — which has killed more than 1 million people worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and more than 206,000 people in the U.S. Luce points out that the U.S. has a "28% higher death rate" than Europe during the pandemic.
The presidential debate, according to Luce, served as a grim reminder that the U.S. is at risk for a "constitutional crisis." Trump, Luce pointed out, refused to say that he will accept the election results if he loses to Biden.
"This week, the world witnessed a new low in America's political culture," Luce explains. "If the country is lucky, it will escape a constitutional crisis in November. Mr. Biden's poll lead has been sufficiently stable to explain why Mr. Trump was even more unpleasant than usual on Tuesday. His intemperate performance may even have cemented his defeat; post-debate polls suggest Mr. Trump's tactics backfired. But his worsening prospects make him even more dangerous."
Luce also laments that even if Biden wins, the U.S. is "likely to be consumed by divisions for the foreseeable future."
According to Luce, "Biden would be more predictable than Mr. Trump, while lacking the means to restore U.S. primacy. Mr. Biden could stop America's internal bleeding. That is ambitious enough. It would be a leap of faith to bet on more than that."


alternet--2020-10-01--The Kushners’ Freddie Mac loan wasn’t just massive. It also came with unusually good terms

> ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom .
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After the news broke in May of last year that government-sponsored lending agency Freddie Mac had agreed to back $ 786 million in loans to the Kushner Companies , political opponents asked whether the family real estate firm formerly led by the president 's son-in-law and top adviser , Jared Kushner , had received special treatment .
“ We are especially concerned about this transaction because of Kushner Companies ' history of seeking to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interest issues with Mr. Kushner , '' Sens .
Elizabeth Warren , D-Mass.
, and Tom Carper , D-Del.
, wrote to Freddie Mac 's CEO in June 2019 .
The loans helped Kushner Companies scoop up thousands of apartments in Maryland and Virginia , the business 's biggest purchase in a decade .
The deal , first reported by Bloomberg , also ranked among Freddie Mac 's largest ever .
At the time , the details of its terms were n't disclosed .
Freddie Mac officials did n't comment publicly then .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ longer involved in decision-making at the company .
( He does continue to receive millions from the family business , according to his financial disclosures , including from some properties with Freddie Mac-backed loans . )
Freddie Mac packaged the 16 loans into bonds in August 2019 and sold them to investors .
But Kushner Companies had n't finished its buying spree .
Within the next two months , records show , Freddie Mac backed another two loans to the Kushners for an additional $ 63.5 million , allowing the company to add @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A new analysis by ProPublica shows Kushner Companies received unusually favorable loan terms for the 18 mortgages it obtained with Freddie Mac 's backing .
The loans allowed the Kushner family company to make lower monthly payments and borrow more money than was typical for similar loans , 2019 Freddie Mac data shows .
The terms increase the risk to the agency and to investors who buy bonds with the Kushner mortgages in them .
Moreover , Freddie Mac 's estimates of the Kushner properties ' profitability — a core element of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have already proven to be overly optimistic .
All 16 properties in the firm 's biggest loan package delivered smaller profits in 2019 than Freddie Mac expected , despite the then-booming economy .
The loan for the largest property lagged Freddie Mac 's profit prediction by 31 % last year .
U.S. taxpayers could be responsible for paying back much of the nearly $ 850 million in Freddie Mac financing if Kushner Companies defaults and its properties drop significantly in value .
Freddie Mac said that 's unlikely .
But during the last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bail out the agency and its larger sibling , Fannie Mae , to the tune of $ 190 billion as the agencies plunged into the government equivalent of bankruptcy .
( The agencies ultimately repaid the money and more . )
The involvement of Jared 's sister Nicole Kushner Meyer adds to questions about whether the family sought to exploit its political influence .
Meyer , who shares her brother 's slight build , porcelain features and dark chestnut hair , lobbied Freddie Mac in person on behalf of Kushner Companies in February @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deal obtained by ProPublica shows .
She has previously drawn criticism for invoking her brother 's name while doing Kushner Companies ' business .
In a statement , Freddie Mac said it does “ not consider the political affiliations of borrowers or their family members . ''
It called ProPublica 's analysis “ random , arbitrary and incomplete '' and asserted that the Kushner loans “ fit squarely within our publicly-available credit and underwriting standards .
The terms and performance of every one of these loans is transparent and available on our website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and have been consistently paid . ''
A spokesperson for Kushner Companies did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment .
Emails to the White House seeking Jared Kushner 's comment were not returned .
There 's no evidence the Trump administration played a role in any of the decisions , and Freddie Mac operates independently .
But Freddie Mac embarked on approving the loans at the moment that its government overseer , the Federal Housing Finance Agency , or FHFA , was changing from leadership by an Obama administration appointee to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Calabria , Vice President Mike Pence 's former chief economist .
Calabria , who was confirmed in April 2019 , has called for an end to the “ conservatorship , '' the close financial control that his agency has exerted over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae since the 2008 crisis .
The potential for improper influence exists even if the Trump administration did n't advocate for the Kushners , said Kathleen Clark , a law professor at Washington University specializing in government and legal ethics .
She compared the situation to press reports @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kushner and his family were approved to receive millions from the Paycheck Protection Program .
Officials could have acted because they were seeking to curry favor with the Kushners or feared retribution if they did n't , according to Clark .
And if Kushner Companies had wanted to avoid any appearance of undue influence , she added , it should have sent only nonfamily executives to meet with Freddie Mac .
“ I 'd leave it to the professionals , '' Clark said .
“ I 'd keep family members away from it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Kushner Companies secured advantageous terms on multiple points .
All 18 loans , for example , allow Kushner Companies to pay only interest for the full 10-year term , thus deferring all principal payments to a balloon payment at the end .
That lowers the monthly payments but increases the possibility that the balance wo n't be paid back in full .
“ That 's as risky as you get , '' said Ryan Ledwith , a professor at New York University 's Schack Institute of Real Estate , of 10-year interest-only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ period of time , and you 're not getting any amortization to reduce your risk over time .
You 're betting the market is going to get better all by itself 10 years from now . ''
Interest-only mortgages , which notoriously helped fuel the 2008 economic crisis , represent a small percentage of Freddie Mac loans .
Only 6 % of the 3,600 loans funded by the agency last year were interest-only for a decade or more , according to a database of its core mortgage transactions .
Kushner Companies also loaded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ usual for similar loans , with the loan value for the 16-loan deal climbing to 69 % of the properties ' worth .
That compares with an average 59 % , according to data for loans with similar terms and property types that Freddie Mac sold to investors in 2019 , and is just below the 70 % debt-to-value ceiling Freddie Mac sets for loans in its category .
“ What we generally have seen from Freddie and Fannie , '' said Andrew Little , a principal with real estate investment bank John @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is they will do 10 years of interest-only on lower-leveraged deals . ''
Loans right at the ceiling are “ not very common , '' Little said , adding that “ you do n't see deals this size that commonly . ''
Meanwhile Freddie Mac and its lending partner overestimated the profits for the buildings in the Kushners ' 16-loan package by 12 % during the underwriting process , according to the agency 's data .
Such analysis is supposed to provide a conservative , accurate picture of revenue and expenses , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of an apartment building .
But the level of income anticipated failed to materialize in 2019 , financial reports show .
The most dramatic overstatement came with the largest loan in the deal , $ 120 million for Bonnie Ridge Apartments , a 960-apartment complex in a suburban part of Baltimore .
In that case , realized profits last year were 31 % below what Freddie Mac had expected .
“ That 's definitely a significant amount , '' said John Griffin , a University of Texas professor who specializes in forensic finance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ co-authored a recent paper highlighting as worrisome loans in which projected profits exceeded actual profits by 5 % .
“ It 's a problem when underwritten income is inflated or overstated , '' he said .
“ That is a key metric that determines the safety of the loan . ''
Griffin 's paper found that 28 % of all loans examined had projected profits that were 5 % or more greater than what the properties actually earned in their first year .
Some instances of underperformance could be caused by bad luck @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such situations should be relatively rare . ''
Yet in the case of Freddie Mac 's estimates in the Kushner deal , 13 of the original 16 loans met or exceeded the 5 % threshold — many by a considerable amount .
Freddie Mac said it followed normal underwriting guidelines in assessing the Kushner buildings , including securing an independent appraisal and looking at historical property performance .
It said investors who examined the riskiest portion of the debt also expressed no concerns .
If the underwriting had been on target , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still have been within Freddie Mac 's credit parameters , data shows .
But the resulting analysis would have suggested the Kushner Companies has a smaller cushion to sustain its loan payments .
It could also have affected the interest rate the company pays .
Thinner margins accompanied by relatively high rates of debt provide less wiggle room if the properties , or the economy , run into trouble .
As Kushner Companies has seen before , that wiggle room can disappear quickly .
Freddie Mac 's main business has historically been buying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that originated them , then selling them to investors as securities .
The arrangement takes the debt off banks ' balance sheets , freeing them to make more loans .
Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are privately owned , but they have been financially backstopped by the federal government and are required to meet goals for lending on affordable housing .
Single-home loans are still Freddie Mac 's primary business , but since the 2008 economic crisis , the agency has greatly expanded its financing of apartment complexes .
Apartment complexes have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whose real estate holdings have spanned the mid-Atlantic and Midwest in recent years , with thousands of units scattered across suburbia .
The company sold off 17,500 apartments in 2007 , after the family 's patriarch , Jared 's father , Charles Kushner , returned from prison for convictions on illegal campaign contributions , tax evasion and witness tampering .
After Jared became CEO in 2008 , the company turned its ambitions to high-profile commercial properties in New York City , a foray that turned sour .
In 2018 , the company gave @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billion building and headquarters , 666 Fifth Avenue , after being unable to keep up with its loans .
Another piece of prime Kushner Companies Manhattan real estate , retail space in the old New York Times building near Times Square , was headed for a potential default in 2019 , and foreclosure .
( The New York Times reported in August that the foreclosure action was put off at the last minute , so negotiations with a lender could continue . )
Kushner Companies eventually resumed its residential focus and began bulking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eight years before Trump entered the White House , the company and its partners secured a total of $ 581 million in Freddie Mac financing , according to data from the firm Real Capital Analytics first published by Bloomberg .
By the end of 2018 , Kushner Companies had amassed 21,000 apartment units .
Some of those loans did n't fare well .
They included a series of supplemental loans , or second mortgages , taken out on properties in Maryland that Kushner Companies owned in partnership with others ( the size of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Landlords often use such second loans as a way to extract large amounts of cash from their holdings .
A lender had originated 10 such loans to Kushner Companies and its partners in 2015 , and Freddie Mac planned to sell them to investors , or securitize them , once the properties demonstrated income consistently high enough to cover the debt payments .
For four of the properties , however , profits dipped in 2016 , and two more were in little better shape .
Freddie Mac still had n't securitized the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , by inauguration day in 2017 .
Mortgage industry experts say poor profits at underlying properties can lead Freddie Mac to delay selling off the loans as bonds , fearing they will be rejected by investors .
By the time Freddie Mac offloaded the last of Kushner 's second mortgages in April 2017 , they had racked up above-average lag times between their origination and securitization , compared with other loans in their debt packages , data shows .
( Freddie Mac said the wait time was normal . )
Within 10 months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ investors , one of the complexes landed on the servicer 's watchlist for mortgages at a heightened risk for default .
Another soon followed , and another the year after that .
All 10 complexes , which were built in the early 1970s or earlier , exhibited upkeep issues alarming enough to earn a flag in Freddie Mac data for “ deferred maintenance '' problems .
( A Freddie Mac spokesman said the issues identified were almost all related to exterior asphalt and concrete , with one instance of an exterior drainage system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one property , a representative of Kushner Companies and its partners blamed residents of the nearby neighborhoods , who are primarily Black and low-income , for its declining profits and a rash of evictions : “ The main driver is the client base in the area , '' the servicer reported the borrower as saying , Freddie Mac records show .
Kushner Companies had other problems , too .
In 2017 , ProPublica reporter Alec MacGillis documented the company 's practice of charging aggressive , and what some tenants ' lawyers called illegal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those complexes .
Tenants also claimed Kushner Companies ' property management arm , Westminster Properties , at times neglected basic repairs and allowed the property condition to deteriorate , including raw sewage flowing out of one kitchen sink .
The complaints spurred a lawsuit filed in October 2019 by the attorney general of Maryland , Brian Frosh .
Frosh accused the management company and its partners of charging “ illegitimate fees '' and having “ rented apartments and townhomes to consumers that are distressed , shoddily maintained , and have conditions that can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being . ''
( Westminster has defended its conduct in legal filings for the suit , which remains active . )
Kushner Companies first approached Freddie Mac in August 2018 through Berkadia Commercial Mortgage , then abandoned its application without explanation in mid-October of that year .
Berkadia did not return messages seeking comment .
In February 2019 , Berkadia approached Freddie Mac again and informed the agency that Kushner Companies wanted to move forward .
It 's not clear what explains the renewed interest .
But two things had changed in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bonds had dropped , a circumstance that typically fuels borrowing and the securitized lending that Freddie provides .
And the Obama appointee in charge of the FHFA was gone , leaving an interim Trump appointee in place .
Six days after rekindling its interest , Nicole Kushner Meyer and two Kushner Companies executives , President Laurent Morali and Chief Operating Officer Peter Febo , met with Freddie Mac officials , along with representatives of Berkadia and an advisory firm , documents show .
The records do n't say which Freddie Mac officials attended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plan for assets , track record and general overview of the Kushner Companies . ''
Meyer followed up , documents say , sending multiple emails to a senior Freddie Mac official , who was not identified .
Meyer has been serving as a principal at Kushner Companies since 2015 , according to her LinkedIn profile .
She caused a stir in 2017 , when she invoked her brother on a trip to China to pitch potential investors for a Kushner Companies development in Jersey City , New Jersey .
The company was seeking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ known as EB-5 , which grants visas to foreigners who make high-dollar investments intended to create jobs in struggling areas .
Freddie Mac said Meyer did not mention Kushner by name during the meeting .
The agency also said no one connected to the White House asked that the deal be done .
But the political sensitivity was obvious to Freddie Mac , whose officials emailed each other in the weeks after the meeting , expressing a desire to minimize press coverage of the deal , according to a person with knowledge of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unusual step of notifying FHFA , their regulator , of the transaction , the timeline shows .
Freddie Mac and FHFA both declined to say why Freddie made the notification except to say that it was necessary as part of the agency 's conservatorship .
( One source suggested deals above a certain dollar amount require such notification . )
In March , Kushner Companies was able to move fast to lock in a favorable interest rate , documents show .
It submitted a financing application , which is needed to request a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rate .
Freddie Mac 's website says that single loans are eligible for such a procedure , but that groups of loans must obtain additional approval .
The day after Kushner Companies submitted its application , documents show , Freddie locked the rate for all 16 mortgages .
Through a spokesman , Freddie Mac said that such locks are an important part of its business model , and that timing is at the borrower 's discretion .
Kushner Companies ' full-term interest-only loan proved exceptional in another way : Freddie Mac had granted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ firm managing $ 85 billion in global investments , interest-only terms for only the first three years of its seven-year mortgages when it had acquired the same apartment complexes in 2015 .
As a result , Lone Star had been able to borrow more money .
But it soon faced a sharp hike in its monthly payments , when it added principal to interest .
Freddie Mac completed its due diligence for the Kushner Companies deal and on May 22 of last year , Kushner Companies and its partner , Torchlight Investors , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with $ 785,803,000 in loans pledged .
Torchlight did not respond to questions .
The properties were largely in the Washington , D.C. , and Baltimore suburbs .
Their average construction date was 1980 , almost a decade older than the other properties Freddie approved for similar loans in 2019 .
From a profit standpoint , the 16 properties were a mixed bag .
Appraisers pegged their value as having increased 2 % overall in the previous four years .
Four of the properties lost value , according to the analysis .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increased the deal 's risk .
Groups of loans are often cross-collateralized , meaning that if one defaults , the lender can seek to seize others to recoup their losses .
The strategy provides an extra hedge against risk for the lender .
The Lone Star properties were cross-collateralized under their previous loan .
But not those for Kushner Companies .
( A Freddie Mac spokesman said cross-collateralization is not required and each of the company 's loans met credit parameters without it . )
Another curious phenomenon emerged in the disclosures for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for seven of the Kushner buildings in 2017 were higher than those listed for the same buildings and same year in prior loan documents .
For some properties , the difference was slight .
But for others , it was more substantial .
At one Kushner complex , for example , the Apartments at Cambridge Court in suburban Baltimore , the 2017 net operating income was nearly 6 % higher in the new loan filing than it had been for the same year in an old disclosure .
In May , ProPublica reported @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that hold mortgages across the commercial real estate industry .
And the paper by Griffin , the University of Texas finance professor , and his colleague Alex Priest also found a pattern of such profit alterations , suggesting multiple institutions are manipulating historical financials to downplay risk and bolster more aggressive lending .
Financial data on how the 18 Kushner properties are faring in this year 's economic slump is not yet available .
You can contact us via Signal , WhatsApp or voicemail at 347-244-2134 .
Here 's more about how you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always email us at tips\ @ trumpincpodcast.org .
“ Trump , Inc. '' is a production of WNYC Studios and ProPublica .
Support our work by visiting donate.propublica.org or by becoming a supporting member of WNYC .
Subscribe here or wherever you get your podcasts .

>ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox.
After the news broke in May of last year that government-sponsored lending agency Freddie Mac had agreed to back $786 million in loans to the Kushner Companies, political opponents asked whether the family real estate firm formerly led by the president's son-in-law and top adviser, Jared Kushner, had received special treatment.
“We are especially concerned about this transaction because of Kushner Companies' history of seeking to engage in deals that raise conflicts of interest issues with Mr. Kushner," Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Tom Carper, D-Del., wrote to Freddie Mac's CEO in June 2019.
The loans helped Kushner Companies scoop up thousands of apartments in Maryland and Virginia, the business's biggest purchase in a decade. The deal, first reported by Bloomberg, also ranked among Freddie Mac's largest ever. At the time, the details of its terms weren't disclosed. Freddie Mac officials didn't comment publicly then. Kushner's lawyer said Jared was no longer involved in decision-making at the company. (He does continue to receive millions from the family business, according to his financial disclosures, including from some properties with Freddie Mac-backed loans.)
Freddie Mac packaged the 16 loans into bonds in August 2019 and sold them to investors. But Kushner Companies hadn't finished its buying spree. Within the next two months, records show, Freddie Mac backed another two loans to the Kushners for an additional $63.5 million, allowing the company to add two more apartment complexes to its portfolio.
A new analysis by ProPublica shows Kushner Companies received unusually favorable loan terms for the 18 mortgages it obtained with Freddie Mac's backing. The loans allowed the Kushner family company to make lower monthly payments and borrow more money than was typical for similar loans, 2019 Freddie Mac data shows. The terms increase the risk to the agency and to investors who buy bonds with the Kushner mortgages in them.
Moreover, Freddie Mac's estimates of the Kushner properties' profitability — a core element of any decision to back a loan — have already proven to be overly optimistic. All 16 properties in the firm's biggest loan package delivered smaller profits in 2019 than Freddie Mac expected, despite the then-booming economy. The loan for the largest property lagged Freddie Mac's profit prediction by 31% last year.
U.S. taxpayers could be responsible for paying back much of the nearly $850 million in Freddie Mac financing if Kushner Companies defaults and its properties drop significantly in value. Freddie Mac said that's unlikely. But during the last real estate crash, taxpayers had to bail out the agency and its larger sibling, Fannie Mae, to the tune of $190 billion as the agencies plunged into the government equivalent of bankruptcy. (The agencies ultimately repaid the money and more.)
The involvement of Jared's sister Nicole Kushner Meyer adds to questions about whether the family sought to exploit its political influence. Meyer, who shares her brother's slight build, porcelain features and dark chestnut hair, lobbied Freddie Mac in person on behalf of Kushner Companies in February last year, a timeline of the deal obtained by ProPublica shows. She has previously drawn criticism for invoking her brother's name while doing Kushner Companies' business.
In a statement, Freddie Mac said it does “not consider the political affiliations of borrowers or their family members." It called ProPublica's analysis “random, arbitrary and incomplete" and asserted that the Kushner loans “fit squarely within our publicly-available credit and underwriting standards. The terms and performance of every one of these loans is transparent and available on our website, and all the loans are current and have been consistently paid."
A spokesperson for Kushner Companies did not respond to calls and emails seeking comment. Emails to the White House seeking Jared Kushner's comment were not returned.
There's no evidence the Trump administration played a role in any of the decisions, and Freddie Mac operates independently. But Freddie Mac embarked on approving the loans at the moment that its government overseer, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, or FHFA, was changing from leadership by an Obama administration appointee to one from the Trump administration, Mark Calabria, Vice President Mike Pence's former chief economist. Calabria, who was confirmed in April 2019, has called for an end to the “conservatorship," the close financial control that his agency has exerted over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae since the 2008 crisis.
The potential for improper influence exists even if the Trump administration didn't advocate for the Kushners, said Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University specializing in government and legal ethics. She compared the situation to press reports that businesses and associates connected to Jared Kushner and his family were approved to receive millions from the Paycheck Protection Program. Officials could have acted because they were seeking to curry favor with the Kushners or feared retribution if they didn't, according to Clark. And if Kushner Companies had wanted to avoid any appearance of undue influence, she added, it should have sent only nonfamily executives to meet with Freddie Mac. “I'd leave it to the professionals," Clark said. “I'd keep family members away from it."
The Freddie Mac data shows that Kushner Companies secured advantageous terms on multiple points. All 18 loans, for example, allow Kushner Companies to pay only interest for the full 10-year term, thus deferring all principal payments to a balloon payment at the end. That lowers the monthly payments but increases the possibility that the balance won't be paid back in full.
“That's as risky as you get," said Ryan Ledwith, a professor at New York University's Schack Institute of Real Estate, of 10-year interest-only loans. “It's a long period of time, and you're not getting any amortization to reduce your risk over time. You're betting the market is going to get better all by itself 10 years from now."
Interest-only mortgages, which notoriously helped fuel the 2008 economic crisis, represent a small percentage of Freddie Mac loans. Only 6% of the 3,600 loans funded by the agency last year were interest-only for a decade or more, according to a database of its core mortgage transactions.
Kushner Companies also loaded more debt on the properties than is usual for similar loans, with the loan value for the 16-loan deal climbing to 69% of the properties' worth. That compares with an average 59%, according to data for loans with similar terms and property types that Freddie Mac sold to investors in 2019, and is just below the 70% debt-to-value ceiling Freddie Mac sets for loans in its category. “What we generally have seen from Freddie and Fannie," said Andrew Little, a principal with real estate investment bank John B. Levy & Company, “is they will do 10 years of interest-only on lower-leveraged deals."
Loans right at the ceiling are “not very common," Little said, adding that “you don't see deals this size that commonly."
Meanwhile Freddie Mac and its lending partner overestimated the profits for the buildings in the Kushners' 16-loan package by 12% during the underwriting process, according to the agency's data. Such analysis is supposed to provide a conservative, accurate picture of revenue and expenses, which should be relatively predictable in the case of an apartment building.
But the level of income anticipated failed to materialize in 2019, financial reports show. The most dramatic overstatement came with the largest loan in the deal, $120 million for Bonnie Ridge Apartments, a 960-apartment complex in a suburban part of Baltimore. In that case, realized profits last year were 31% below what Freddie Mac had expected.
“That's definitely a significant amount," said John Griffin, a University of Texas professor who specializes in forensic finance and has studied mortgage underwriting. He co-authored a recent paper highlighting as worrisome loans in which projected profits exceeded actual profits by 5%. “It's a problem when underwritten income is inflated or overstated," he said. “That is a key metric that determines the safety of the loan."
Griffin's paper found that 28% of all loans examined had projected profits that were 5% or more greater than what the properties actually earned in their first year. Some instances of underperformance could be caused by bad luck, the paper acknowledged, but “such situations should be relatively rare." Yet in the case of Freddie Mac's estimates in the Kushner deal, 13 of the original 16 loans met or exceeded the 5% threshold — many by a considerable amount.
Freddie Mac said it followed normal underwriting guidelines in assessing the Kushner buildings, including securing an independent appraisal and looking at historical property performance. It said investors who examined the riskiest portion of the debt also expressed no concerns.
If the underwriting had been on target, and reflected lower expectations, the loans would still have been within Freddie Mac's credit parameters, data shows. But the resulting analysis would have suggested the Kushner Companies has a smaller cushion to sustain its loan payments. It could also have affected the interest rate the company pays. Thinner margins accompanied by relatively high rates of debt provide less wiggle room if the properties, or the economy, run into trouble. As Kushner Companies has seen before, that wiggle room can disappear quickly.
Freddie Mac's main business has historically been buying bundles of home loans from the lenders that originated them, then selling them to investors as securities. The arrangement takes the debt off banks' balance sheets, freeing them to make more loans. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are privately owned, but they have been financially backstopped by the federal government and are required to meet goals for lending on affordable housing.
Single-home loans are still Freddie Mac's primary business, but since the 2008 economic crisis, the agency has greatly expanded its financing of apartment complexes.
Apartment complexes have been the specialty of the Kushner family, whose real estate holdings have spanned the mid-Atlantic and Midwest in recent years, with thousands of units scattered across suburbia. The company sold off 17,500 apartments in 2007, after the family's patriarch, Jared's father, Charles Kushner, returned from prison for convictions on illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion and witness tampering.
After Jared became CEO in 2008, the company turned its ambitions to high-profile commercial properties in New York City, a foray that turned sour. In 2018, the company gave up control of its marquee $1.8 billion building and headquarters, 666 Fifth Avenue, after being unable to keep up with its loans. Another piece of prime Kushner Companies Manhattan real estate, retail space in the old New York Times building near Times Square, was headed for a potential default in 2019, and foreclosure. (The New York Times reported in August that the foreclosure action was put off at the last minute, so negotiations with a lender could continue.)
Kushner Companies eventually resumed its residential focus and began bulking up its apartment portfolio. In the eight years before Trump entered the White House, the company and its partners secured a total of $581 million in Freddie Mac financing, according to data from the firm Real Capital Analytics first published by Bloomberg. By the end of 2018, Kushner Companies had amassed 21,000 apartment units.
Some of those loans didn't fare well. They included a series of supplemental loans, or second mortgages, taken out on properties in Maryland that Kushner Companies owned in partnership with others (the size of the Kushner share was not clear). Landlords often use such second loans as a way to extract large amounts of cash from their holdings.
A lender had originated 10 such loans to Kushner Companies and its partners in 2015, and Freddie Mac planned to sell them to investors, or securitize them, once the properties demonstrated income consistently high enough to cover the debt payments. For four of the properties, however, profits dipped in 2016, and two more were in little better shape. Freddie Mac still hadn't securitized the six loans, for $40 million, by inauguration day in 2017.
Mortgage industry experts say poor profits at underlying properties can lead Freddie Mac to delay selling off the loans as bonds, fearing they will be rejected by investors. By the time Freddie Mac offloaded the last of Kushner's second mortgages in April 2017, they had racked up above-average lag times between their origination and securitization, compared with other loans in their debt packages, data shows. (Freddie Mac said the wait time was normal.)
Within 10 months of the sale of the loans to investors, one of the complexes landed on the servicer's watchlist for mortgages at a heightened risk for default. Another soon followed, and another the year after that. All 10 complexes, which were built in the early 1970s or earlier, exhibited upkeep issues alarming enough to earn a flag in Freddie Mac data for “deferred maintenance" problems. (A Freddie Mac spokesman said the issues identified were almost all related to exterior asphalt and concrete, with one instance of an exterior drainage system in need of repair.)
At one property, a representative of Kushner Companies and its partners blamed residents of the nearby neighborhoods, who are primarily Black and low-income, for its declining profits and a rash of evictions: “The main driver is the client base in the area," the servicer reported the borrower as saying, Freddie Mac records show.
Kushner Companies had other problems, too. In 2017, ProPublica reporter Alec MacGillis documented the company's practice of charging aggressive, and what some tenants' lawyers called illegal, fees to occupants of some of those complexes. Tenants also claimed Kushner Companies' property management arm, Westminster Properties, at times neglected basic repairs and allowed the property condition to deteriorate, including raw sewage flowing out of one kitchen sink.
The complaints spurred a lawsuit filed in October 2019 by the attorney general of Maryland, Brian Frosh. Frosh accused the management company and its partners of charging “illegitimate fees" and having “rented apartments and townhomes to consumers that are distressed, shoddily maintained, and have conditions that can adversely impact consumers' health and well being." (Westminster has defended its conduct in legal filings for the suit, which remains active.)
Kushner Companies first approached Freddie Mac in August 2018 through Berkadia Commercial Mortgage, then abandoned its application without explanation in mid-October of that year. Berkadia did not return messages seeking comment.
In February 2019, Berkadia approached Freddie Mac again and informed the agency that Kushner Companies wanted to move forward. It's not clear what explains the renewed interest. But two things had changed in the interim. The rates on 10-year Treasury bonds had dropped, a circumstance that typically fuels borrowing and the securitized lending that Freddie provides. And the Obama appointee in charge of the FHFA was gone, leaving an interim Trump appointee in place.
Six days after rekindling its interest, Nicole Kushner Meyer and two Kushner Companies executives, President Laurent Morali and Chief Operating Officer Peter Febo, met with Freddie Mac officials, along with representatives of Berkadia and an advisory firm, documents show. The records don't say which Freddie Mac officials attended. The meeting covered the “business plan for assets, track record and general overview of the Kushner Companies." Meyer followed up, documents say, sending multiple emails to a senior Freddie Mac official, who was not identified.
Meyer has been serving as a principal at Kushner Companies since 2015, according to her LinkedIn profile. She caused a stir in 2017, when she invoked her brother on a trip to China to pitch potential investors for a Kushner Companies development in Jersey City, New Jersey. The company was seeking investors to participate in a government program known as EB-5, which grants visas to foreigners who make high-dollar investments intended to create jobs in struggling areas.
Freddie Mac said Meyer did not mention Kushner by name during the meeting. The agency also said no one connected to the White House asked that the deal be done.
But the political sensitivity was obvious to Freddie Mac, whose officials emailed each other in the weeks after the meeting, expressing a desire to minimize press coverage of the deal, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. They also took the unusual step of notifying FHFA, their regulator, of the transaction, the timeline shows. Freddie Mac and FHFA both declined to say why Freddie made the notification except to say that it was necessary as part of the agency's conservatorship. (One source suggested deals above a certain dollar amount require such notification.)
In March, Kushner Companies was able to move fast to lock in a favorable interest rate, documents show. It submitted a financing application, which is needed to request a lock on a component of its interest rate. Freddie Mac's website says that single loans are eligible for such a procedure, but that groups of loans must obtain additional approval. The day after Kushner Companies submitted its application, documents show, Freddie locked the rate for all 16 mortgages.
Through a spokesman, Freddie Mac said that such locks are an important part of its business model, and that timing is at the borrower's discretion.
Kushner Companies' full-term interest-only loan proved exceptional in another way: Freddie Mac had granted Lone Star Funds, a private equity firm managing $85 billion in global investments, interest-only terms for only the first three years of its seven-year mortgages when it had acquired the same apartment complexes in 2015. As a result, Lone Star had been able to borrow more money. But it soon faced a sharp hike in its monthly payments, when it added principal to interest.
(Freddie Mac said full-term, interest-only loans are more common when the pool of mortgages examined is restricted to larger, conventional loans. Nonpublic data shows they made up roughly 20% of such loans over the last three years, the agency said.)
Freddie Mac completed its due diligence for the Kushner Companies deal and on May 22 of last year, Kushner Companies and its partner, Torchlight Investors, took ownership of the 16 properties, with $785,803,000 in loans pledged. Torchlight did not respond to questions.
The properties were largely in the Washington, D.C., and Baltimore suburbs. Their average construction date was 1980, almost a decade older than the other properties Freddie approved for similar loans in 2019.
From a profit standpoint, the 16 properties were a mixed bag. Appraisers pegged their value as having increased 2% overall in the previous four years. Four of the properties lost value, according to the analysis.
The Kushners also benefited from another provision that increased the deal's risk. Groups of loans are often cross-collateralized, meaning that if one defaults, the lender can seek to seize others to recoup their losses. The strategy provides an extra hedge against risk for the lender. The Lone Star properties were cross-collateralized under their previous loan. But not those for Kushner Companies. (A Freddie Mac spokesman said cross-collateralization is not required and each of the company's loans met credit parameters without it.)
Another curious phenomenon emerged in the disclosures for the new loans: The reported profits for seven of the Kushner buildings in 2017 were higher than those listed for the same buildings and same year in prior loan documents. For some properties, the difference was slight. But for others, it was more substantial. At one Kushner complex, for example, the Apartments at Cambridge Court in suburban Baltimore, the 2017 net operating income was nearly 6% higher in the new loan filing than it had been for the same year in an old disclosure.
In May, ProPublica reported a pattern of similar discrepancies in bonds that hold mortgages across the commercial real estate industry. And the paper by Griffin, the University of Texas finance professor, and his colleague Alex Priest also found a pattern of such profit alterations, suggesting multiple institutions are manipulating historical financials to downplay risk and bolster more aggressive lending.
Financial data on how the 18 Kushner properties are faring in this year's economic slump is not yet available.
Contact Us
You can contact us via Signal, WhatsApp or voicemail at 347-244-2134. Here's more about how you can contact us securely.
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alternet--2020-10-01--Trump-Putin 'soul-crushing' summit showcased how Russia benefited from the 2016 election: Ex-Mueller

Trump-Putin 'soul-crushing' summit showcased how Russia benefited from the 2016 election: Ex-Mueller prosecutor

Federal prosecutors and FBI agents for special counsel Robert Mueller 's Department of Justice ( DOJ ) office were left reeling after President Donald Trump publicly sided with Russian President Vladimir Putin following the Helsinki summit in 2018 , according to memoir written by former Mueller prosecutor , Andrew Weissmann .
The memoir titled , `` Where Law Ends : Inside the Mueller Investigation '' details the timeline of events that transpired just days after Mueller 's office 12 Russian military intelligence officers were indicted for their alleged role in the alleged `` hack and dump '' leak operative carried @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hillary Clinton campaign .
Despite the charges and evidence presented to support the indictments , Trump defended Putin as he insisted the president simply said that his country was not responsible .
`` I have President Putin , '' Trump said at the time .
`` He just said it 's not Russia I will say this : I do n't see any reason why it would be . ''
`` By this time , Trump not only had the conclusions of the original intelligence assessment , but the incontrovertible proof '' from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and corroborate it , '' Weissmann wrote .
`` Still , Trump said , Putin 'was extremely strong and powerful in his denial , ' and that was apparently enough for him . ''
According to the memoir , prosecutors in Mueller 's office saw Trump 's remarks as `` surreal '' and `` soul crushing . ''
Many found Trump 's remarks to be relatively alarming .
`` It was like they 'd built up a mountain of incriminating evidence only to watch the prosecutor suddenly decide to call off the case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ defendant said he was n't guilty , '' Weissman added .
Weissmann continued , `` The scene in Helsinki should have been stunning to the average American viewer , but for those within our office who 'd poured energy into pinning down these facts , it was profoundly alarming .
Here was our own president kowtowing to Putin , denying the election interference he had perpetrated on our nation and siding with a bloody dictator over a bipartisan consensus in the Senate and the nonpartisan conclusions of the IC that Putin had attacked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , `` Where Law Ends : Inside the Mueller Investigation '' was released on Tuesday , September 29 .

Federal prosecutors and FBI agents for special counsel Robert Mueller's Department of Justice (DOJ) office were left reeling after President Donald Trump publicly sided with Russian President Vladimir Putin following the Helsinki summit in 2018, according to memoir written by former Mueller prosecutor, Andrew Weissmann.
The memoir titled, "Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation" details the timeline of events that transpired just days after Mueller's office 12 Russian military intelligence officers were indicted for their alleged role in the alleged "hack and dump" leak operative carried out against Democratic National Committee and the Hillary Clinton campaign.
Despite the charges and evidence presented to support the indictments, Trump defended Putin as he insisted the president simply said that his country was not responsible.
"I have President Putin," Trump said at the time. "He just said it's not Russia I will say this: I don't see any reason why it would be."
"By this time, Trump not only had the conclusions of the original intelligence assessment, but the incontrovertible proof" from Mueller's team "to expand on and corroborate it," Weissmann wrote. "Still, Trump said, Putin 'was extremely strong and powerful in his denial,' and that was apparently enough for him."
According to the memoir, prosecutors in Mueller's office saw Trump's remarks as "surreal" and "soul crushing." Many found Trump's remarks to be relatively alarming.
"It was like they'd built up a mountain of incriminating evidence only to watch the prosecutor suddenly decide to call off the case and go home, just because the defendant said he wasn't guilty," Weissman added.
Weissmann continued, "The scene in Helsinki should have been stunning to the average American viewer, but for those within our office who'd poured energy into pinning down these facts, it was profoundly alarming. Here was our own president kowtowing to Putin, denying the election interference he had perpetrated on our nation and siding with a bloody dictator over a bipartisan consensus in the Senate and the nonpartisan conclusions of the IC that Putin had attacked our democracy."
Weissman's memoir, "Where Law Ends: Inside the Mueller Investigation" was released on Tuesday, September 29.


alternet--2020-10-01--‘Classic projection’: Mary Trump says the president was triggered when Biden called his policy ‘not

‘Classic projection’: Mary Trump says the president was triggered when Biden called his policy ‘not smart’

President Donald Trump 's niece Mary not only spent her life around the president and his family , but she also has the benefit of being a psychologist who could legitimately assess the life and mental health of her uncle .
Speaking to MSNBC 's Lawrence O'Donnell , she explained that in one particular moment in the Tuesday evening debate , Trump seemed triggered by former Vice President Joe Biden 's use of the phrase `` not smart '' in reference to a policy .
Trump went off .
`` Did you use the word 'smart ? '
'' Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plan as not being `` smart . ''
`` So you said you went to Delaware State but you forgot the name of your college , '' Trump continued , falsely claiming something Biden never said .
`` You did n't go to Delaware state .
You graduated either the lowest or almost the lowest in your class .
Do n't ever use the word 'smart ' with me .
Do n't ever use that word . ''
Mary Trump explained that it was `` classic projection '' on the president 's part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' had nothing to do with Trump himself , he could n't control himself .
`` Well , he knows [ smart ] does n't apply to him , and he 's very insecure about it , '' she said .
`` That was just classic projection because , you know , it also did n't make any sense .
Joe Biden was talking about a tactic that was n't the right way to approach something .
He was n't talking about anybody 's IQ .
So , I think it was just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the surface .
O'Donnell noted that when Biden called Trump a `` racist , '' he did n't bat an eye and did n't seem to care .
Mary Trump explained that it was `` classic projection '' on the president 's part .
Even though the `` not smart '' had nothing to do with Trump himself , he could n't control himself .
`` Well , he knows [ smart ] does n't apply to him , and he 's very insecure about it , '' she said .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you know , it also did n't make any sense .
Joe Biden was talking about a tactic that was n't the right way to approach something .
He was n't talking about anybody 's IQ .
So , I think it was just another example of Donald 's insecurity coming to the surface .
O'Donnell noted that when Biden called Trump a `` racist , '' he did n't bat an eye and did n't seem to care .
`` That was a great observation , '' noted Mary Trump .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that label as we saw with his horrific comments or failure to comment , I should say , on condemning white supremacy .
He knows — first of all , he is a white supremacist , so he 's not going to go condemn himself .
And secondly , he knows that that is something about him that plays with his base , and his base is all he 's got left . ''
Biden went after Trump 's attacks on soldiers , talking about his late son , who served in Iraq @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soldiers to attacking Biden 's other son Hunter for his addiction struggle .
Mary Trump said that her reaction to it was `` pure rage . ''
`` It was horrifying , '' she said .
`` It was certainly not the most dangerous moment in the debate , but I think it explains why other moments are as dangerous as they are .
This shows us who he is .
First of all , I found Vice President Biden 's restraint absolutely incomprehensible .
But that 's who — that 's who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He is contemptuous .
And when Vice President Biden was able to steer the conversation back to something that mattered , his son 's recovery , and to say how proud he was of his son , I first thought personally I wish he had been my father 's dad .
But unfortunately , Donald Trump was my father 's brother , so it was a pretty devastating moment . ''
See the interview below :

President Donald Trump's niece Mary not only spent her life around the president and his family, but she also has the benefit of being a psychologist who could legitimately assess the life and mental health of her uncle.
Speaking to MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell, she explained that in one particular moment in the Tuesday evening debate, Trump seemed triggered by former Vice President Joe Biden's use of the phrase "not smart" in reference to a policy. Trump went off.
"Did you use the word 'smart?'" Trump asked after Biden insulted Trump's coronavirus plan as not being "smart."
"So you said you went to Delaware State but you forgot the name of your college," Trump continued, falsely claiming something Biden never said. "You didn't go to Delaware state. You graduated either the lowest or almost the lowest in your class. Don't ever use the word 'smart' with me. Don't ever use that word."
Mary Trump explained that it was "classic projection" on the president's part. Even though the "not smart" had nothing to do with Trump himself, he couldn't control himself.
"Well, he knows [smart] doesn't apply to him, and he's very insecure about it," she said. "That was just classic projection because, you know, it also didn't make any sense. Joe Biden was talking about a tactic that wasn't the right way to approach something. He wasn't talking about anybody's IQ. So, I think it was just another example of Donald's insecurity coming to the surface.
O'Donnell noted that when Biden called Trump a "racist," he didn't bat an eye and didn't seem to care.
Mary Trump explained that it was "classic projection" on the president's part. Even though the "not smart" had nothing to do with Trump himself, he couldn't control himself.
"Well, he knows [smart] doesn't apply to him, and he's very insecure about it," she said. "That was just classic projection because, you know, it also didn't make any sense. Joe Biden was talking about a tactic that wasn't the right way to approach something. He wasn't talking about anybody's IQ. So, I think it was just another example of Donald's insecurity coming to the surface.
O'Donnell noted that when Biden called Trump a "racist," he didn't bat an eye and didn't seem to care.
"That was a great observation," noted Mary Trump. "No, he's happy to take that label as we saw with his horrific comments or failure to comment, I should say, on condemning white supremacy. He knows — first of all, he is a white supremacist, so he's not going to go condemn himself. And secondly, he knows that that is something about him that plays with his base, and his base is all he's got left."
Biden went after Trump's attacks on soldiers, talking about his late son, who served in Iraq. Trump pivoted from Biden talking about soldiers to attacking Biden's other son Hunter for his addiction struggle. Mary Trump said that her reaction to it was "pure rage."
"It was horrifying," she said. "It was certainly not the most dangerous moment in the debate, but I think it explains why other moments are as dangerous as they are. This shows us who he is. First of all, I found Vice President Biden's restraint absolutely incomprehensible. But that's who — that's who Donald is. He is cruel. He is contemptuous. And when Vice President Biden was able to steer the conversation back to something that mattered, his son's recovery, and to say how proud he was of his son, I first thought personally I wish he had been my father's dad. But unfortunately, Donald Trump was my father's brother, so it was a pretty devastating moment."
See the interview below:
Part 1:
Mary Trump youtu.be
Part 2:


alternet--2020-10-01--Trump team terrified Brad Parscale will flip on them: report

Amid the crisis caused by President Donald Trump 's chaotic presidential debate performance , he now has another obstacle to contend with : the devastating impact his former campaign manager Brad Parscale could have on his re-election .
Over the last five days , a lot has changed for Parscale and the Trump family fears he could be reaching his tipping point .
On Sunday , Parscale made headlines following a domestic altercation and meltdown that , subsequently , led to his arrest .
The arrest came amid an ongoing investigation reportedly being conducted by the Trump campaign and Republican @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stole more than $ 40 million from the presidential campaign and an additional $ 10 million from the Republican National Committee .
Now , the Trump family , along with the president 's re-election campaign , fear Parscale could turn on them and opt to cooperate with law enforcement on `` possible campaign finance violations . ''
`` The family is worried Brad will start talking , '' the source said , according to Vanity Fair .
Concern about Parscale 's next move came amid the announcement of his departure from the Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday , Parscale attributed his immediate departure from the president 's re-election to `` overwhelming stress . ''
`` I am stepping away from my company and any role in the campaign for the immediate future to focus on my family and get help dealing with the overwhelming stress , '' Parscale said in a statement .
Parscale 's wife , Candice , also spoke out on Wednesday with a statement of her own .
Although she told law enforcement authorities on Sunday that her husband had been physically abusive , she now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' and her husband has never been violent .
`` The statements I made on Sunday have been misconstrued , let it be clear my husband was not violent towards me that day or any day prior , '' she said .
The two have also released a joint statement about the ordeal saying , `` We extend our thanks for everyone 's thoughts and support during this difficult time for our family and we eagerly await all of the facts emerging . ''
The latest ordeal involving Parscale comes months after he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ president 's underwhelming rally in Tulsa , Okla .
In the days leading up to the highly anticipated rally , Parscale claimed more than one million Trump supporters had registered to attend the event .
He also touted the possibility of massive turnout .
However , the Tulsa Fire Department reported that only 6,200 Trump supporters attended the rally as photos and footage of the arena revealed mostly empty seats .
Almost immediately after reports surfaced about the rally , there was speculation Parscale would be held responsible for the lackluster event .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Parscale was demoted .
Since then , Parscale has reportedly been concerned about how he will maintain his lavish lifestyle without the campaign cash flow .
But , despite numerous reports about the investigative probe into Parscale 's financial activity , Trump campaign 's communications director , Tim Murtaugh has refuted the claims saying , `` It 's utterly false .
There is no investigation , no audit , and there never was . ''

Amid the crisis caused by President Donald Trump's chaotic presidential debate performance, he now has another obstacle to contend with: the devastating impact his former campaign manager Brad Parscale could have on his re-election.
Over the last five days, a lot has changed for Parscale and the Trump family fears he could be reaching his tipping point. On Sunday, Parscale made headlines following a domestic altercation and meltdown that, subsequently, led to his arrest.
The arrest came amid an ongoing investigation reportedly being conducted by the Trump campaign and Republican National Convention. Both parties allege Parscale stole more than $40 million from the presidential campaign and an additional $10 million from the Republican National Committee.
Now, the Trump family, along with the president's re-election campaign, fear Parscale could turn on them and opt to cooperate with law enforcement on "possible campaign finance violations."
"The family is worried Brad will start talking," the source said, according to Vanity Fair.
Concern about Parscale's next move came amid the announcement of his departure from the Trump campaign. In a statement released on Wednesday, Parscale attributed his immediate departure from the president's re-election to "overwhelming stress."
"I am stepping away from my company and any role in the campaign for the immediate future to focus on my family and get help dealing with the overwhelming stress," Parscale said in a statement.
Parscale's wife, Candice, also spoke out on Wednesday with a statement of her own. Although she told law enforcement authorities on Sunday that her husband had been physically abusive, she now insists her statements have been "misconstrued" and her husband has never been violent.
"The statements I made on Sunday have been misconstrued, let it be clear my husband was not violent towards me that day or any day prior," she said.
The two have also released a joint statement about the ordeal saying, "We extend our thanks for everyone's thoughts and support during this difficult time for our family and we eagerly await all of the facts emerging."
The latest ordeal involving Parscale comes months after he was demoted as campaign manager following the president's underwhelming rally in Tulsa, Okla. In the days leading up to the highly anticipated rally, Parscale claimed more than one million Trump supporters had registered to attend the event. He also touted the possibility of massive turnout. However, the Tulsa Fire Department reported that only 6,200 Trump supporters attended the rally as photos and footage of the arena revealed mostly empty seats.
Almost immediately after reports surfaced about the rally, there was speculation Parscale would be held responsible for the lackluster event. Less than one month after the rally, Parscale was demoted.
Since then, Parscale has reportedly been concerned about how he will maintain his lavish lifestyle without the campaign cash flow.
The Daily Mail reported:
A Trump insider explained to DailyMail.com that Parscale went into a tailspin after he was demoted in July and replaced by his former number two, Bill Stepien, as he's worried about the 'gravy train' ending and keeping up with his lavish lifestyle.
But, despite numerous reports about the investigative probe into Parscale's financial activity, Trump campaign's communications director, Tim Murtaugh has refuted the claims saying, "It's utterly false. There is no investigation, no audit, and there never was."


alternet--2020-10-01--Survey shows 60% of US families struggling to get by as McConnell dismisses new COVID-19 relief bill

On the Senate floor Wednesday , Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated once again that he has no intention of providing badly-needed aid to struggling families across the U.S. even as new research found that nearly two-thirds of households with children are having trouble making ends meet .
McConnell dismissed the Democratic Party 's latest version of the HEROES Act as a `` political stunt , '' making it clear that like the bill which passed in the House in May—which has now languished in the Senate for 138 days—the $ 2.2 trillion relief package which House Democrats unveiled on Monday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of families who need it .
`` As always , his priorities are appalling , '' Vanita Gupta , president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights , tweeted , noting McConnell 's determination to push through the confirmation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett—who has frequently ruled in favor of powerful corporations—to the U.S. Supreme Court .
McConnell 's dismissal of the legislation—which includes a renewal of the $ 600-per-week enhanced unemployment benefits passed as part of the CARES Act in March , another round of $ 1,200 direct payments for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and local governments—came amid the release of a new poll displaying the struggles of families across the country .
`` The numbers of people in trouble , that is the shock .
It 's a very large number of people who ca n't pay the basics . ''
—Dr .
Robert Blendon , Harvard T.H .
Chan School of Public Health NPR , the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation , and the Harvard T.H .
Chan School of Public Health released the results of a survey taken in July and August of 3,400 adults @ @ @ @ @ @ @ finding that 60 % of respondents in the latter group have lost jobs or businesses or have otherwise had their incomes reduced since the coronavirus pandemic began in March .
Sixty-one percent of families reported having `` serious financial problems '' during the public health and economic crisis .
Just over half of white families said they have been facing severe difficulties affording necessities like mortgages or rent , credit card bills , groceries , and medical expenses , while a higher share of people of color reported trouble making ends meet .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of Black families said they are facing serious economic strife .
Among the millions of American households where at least one person has contracted Covid-19—of which `` essential workers '' in the healthcare , retail , food , and other public-facing industries are especially at risk—the effects of the economic crisis are being felt even more acutely , according to the survey .
Ninety-four percent of families in which someone has had the disease reported serious financial problems and 84 % said they have faced reduced income .
Researchers who conducted the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unemployment benefits and direct relief included in the CARES Act—relatively minor steps taken by the federal government compared to those taken in other wealthy countries , but ones that had a measurable , positive impact on poverty levels—families are still struggling to make ends meet as much as they are .
`` The numbers of people in trouble , that is the shock , '' Dr. Robert Blendon , director of the study behind the poll and a professor at the Harvard T.H .
Chan School of Public Health , told the New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very large number of people who ca n't pay the basics . ''
Researchers who examined the study also raised concerns over the long-term impacts of the crisis on the children of families who are struggling , as school-age children face social isolation due to remote schooling while also coping with their parents ' financial hardships .
`` Could this course correct if everything goes back to school and everything opens up again in the next eight months to 12 months ? ''
Anna Johnson , a developmental psychologist at Georgetown University who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told NPR .
`` Maybe .
But [ there are ] going to have to be a lot of resources targeted just to these families to help them overcome what is probably a traumatic experience for them . ''

On the Senate floor Wednesday, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated once again that he has no intention of providing badly-needed aid to struggling families across the U.S. even as new research found that nearly two-thirds of households with children are having trouble making ends meet.
McConnell dismissed the Democratic Party's latest version of the HEROES Act as a "political stunt," making it clear that like the bill which passed in the House in May—which has now languished in the Senate for 138 days—the $2.2 trillion relief package which House Democrats unveiled on Monday is not likely to reach the millions of families who need it.
"As always, his priorities are appalling," Vanita Gupta, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, tweeted, noting McConnell's determination to push through the confirmation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett—who has frequently ruled in favor of powerful corporations—to the U.S. Supreme Court.
McConnell's dismissal of the legislation—which includes a renewal of the $600-per-week enhanced unemployment benefits passed as part of the CARES Act in March, another round of $1,200 direct payments for most Americans, and aid for state and local governments—came amid the release of a new poll displaying the struggles of families across the country.
"The numbers of people in trouble, that is the shock. It's a very large number of people who can't pay the basics."
—Dr. Robert Blendon, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health released the results of a survey taken in July and August of 3,400 adults including 1,000 with children at home, finding that 60% of respondents in the latter group have lost jobs or businesses or have otherwise had their incomes reduced since the coronavirus pandemic began in March.
Sixty-one percent of families reported having "serious financial problems" during the public health and economic crisis. Just over half of white families said they have been facing severe difficulties affording necessities like mortgages or rent, credit card bills, groceries, and medical expenses, while a higher share of people of color reported trouble making ends meet. Eight-six percent of Latino families and 66% of Black families said they are facing serious economic strife.
Among the millions of American households where at least one person has contracted Covid-19—of which "essential workers" in the healthcare, retail, food, and other public-facing industries are especially at risk—the effects of the economic crisis are being felt even more acutely, according to the survey. Ninety-four percent of families in which someone has had the disease reported serious financial problems and 84% said they have faced reduced income.
Researchers who conducted the survey expressed alarm that after the enhanced unemployment benefits and direct relief included in the CARES Act—relatively minor steps taken by the federal government compared to those taken in other wealthy countries, but ones that had a measurable, positive impact on poverty levels—families are still struggling to make ends meet as much as they are.
"The numbers of people in trouble, that is the shock," Dr. Robert Blendon, director of the study behind the poll and a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told the New York Times. "It's a very large number of people who can't pay the basics."
Researchers who examined the study also raised concerns over the long-term impacts of the crisis on the children of families who are struggling, as school-age children face social isolation due to remote schooling while also coping with their parents' financial hardships.
"Could this course correct if everything goes back to school and everything opens up again in the next eight months to 12 months?" Anna Johnson, a developmental psychologist at Georgetown University who was not involved in the study, toldNPR. "Maybe. But [there are] going to have to be a lot of resources targeted just to these families to help them overcome what is probably a traumatic experience for them."