"Sean Hannity is a “welfare queen,” according to fellow conservative Bret Stephens of the New York Times. The Reagan-themed insult refers to Hannity's use of a federal guaranteed-loan program to fund real estate purchases and is meant to suggest that the Fox News host who often decries government handouts is a wealthy hypocrite.
But Hannity's target audience comprises the same people who voted for President Trump, an even wealthier figure who complained that immigrants are taking U.S. jobs yet employed foreign workers. Walking the talk is not necessarily required, if the talk is appealing enough.
The Georgia mortgages supported by HUD were guaranteed as part of a program aimed at protecting investors such as Hannity who buy rental apartment buildings. The government promises to cover losses if borrowers default on their mortgages. Borrowers pay an insurance premium to HUD in return. Bigger loan guarantees are available if the building houses low-income families.
There is nothing inherently wrong with making use of the federal program, which is designed to encourage landlords to rent to tenants who might seem unreliable. A landlord such as Hannity can rest easy, knowing that if his tenants falls behind on rent, the mortgage on his apartment building is covered because taxpayers have assumed some of the risk.
“It is ironic that I am being attacked for investing my personal money in communities that badly need such investment.”
In reality, Hannity is being attacked for his apparent inconsistency. He has criticized Obama-era loan guarantees, most notably one that left taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars when the clean-energy company Solyndra went bankrupt in 2011.
Hannity's opposition to such an arrangement is not so principled that he would not accept one of his own. But Hannity's appeal is not rooted in principle; it is rooted in his ability to articulate viewers' feelings."
But Hannity's target audience comprises the same people who voted for President Trump, an even wealthier figure who complained that immigrants are taking U.S. jobs yet employed foreign workers. Walking the talk is not necessarily required, if the talk is appealing enough.
The Georgia mortgages supported by HUD were guaranteed as part of a program aimed at protecting investors such as Hannity who buy rental apartment buildings. The government promises to cover losses if borrowers default on their mortgages. Borrowers pay an insurance premium to HUD in return. Bigger loan guarantees are available if the building houses low-income families.
There is nothing inherently wrong with making use of the federal program, which is designed to encourage landlords to rent to tenants who might seem unreliable. A landlord such as Hannity can rest easy, knowing that if his tenants falls behind on rent, the mortgage on his apartment building is covered because taxpayers have assumed some of the risk.
“It is ironic that I am being attacked for investing my personal money in communities that badly need such investment.”
In reality, Hannity is being attacked for his apparent inconsistency. He has criticized Obama-era loan guarantees, most notably one that left taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars when the clean-energy company Solyndra went bankrupt in 2011.
Hannity's opposition to such an arrangement is not so principled that he would not accept one of his own. But Hannity's appeal is not rooted in principle; it is rooted in his ability to articulate viewers' feelings."
