A federal grand jury in Maryland is examining whether the Justice Department‘s mortgage-fraud investigation involving Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) was properly handled by Trump administration officials, according to a source who spoke about her interview with prosecutors.
The seemingly unusual review has drawn in witness Christine Bish, a California Republican congressional candidate who assembled a more than 100-page packet of research alleging irregularities in Schiff’s home-loan records, she revealed in a phone interview with the Washington Examiner.
The material, which Bish began compiling in 2020 as part of opposition research in her congressional race, was later routed through the Federal Housing Finance Agency, led by Bill Pulte. Ultimately, it was referred to the DOJ, where it landed with U.S. Pardon Attorney Ed Martin, who was tapped by Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate mortgage fraud.
However, when Bish was called in as a witness to testify at the federal courthouse in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Thursday, she said prosecutors there appeared far more interested in whether anyone had improperly represented themselves as working for Martin or Pulte than in the evidence she delivered about Schiff.
‘They kept asking me about Pulte and Martin’
Bish said she expected to answer questions about Schiff’s mortgages and the violations she outlined in her submission. Instead, she said a three-person team, including a federal prosecutor, an FBI agent, and an investigator from the FHFA inspector general’s office, repeatedly pressed her on her communications with Martin, Pulte, or anyone claiming to act on their behalf.
“They kept asking, ‘What is your communication with Director Pulte? What is your communication with Ed Martin?’” Bish said. “I told them I’ve never met Ed Martin. I’ve never talked to Ed Martin. The only interaction is that we follow each other on social media, and sometimes I’ll comment, ‘Good morning from California.’ That’s it.”
The line of inquiry investigators pursued
Investigators sought information about the possibility that a person claimed to be working for Pulte or Martin without being properly deputized, two sources familiar with the situation told CNN on Thursday.
Bish told the Washington Examiner that a copy of a subpoena sent to her directed her to turn over communications involving “any person or persons claiming to be William Pulte” or claiming to work at his direction, as well as anyone purporting to be affiliated with Martin or the DOJ’s mortgage-fraud investigation.
The subjects of the investigation are unclear, as are the statutes and criminal theories being examined by investigators. However, Bish said the nature of the interview made her feel like the prosecutors were not focusing solely on Schiff, but on the conduct of those who have been investigating the California senator.
Bish: ‘I wanted to talk about Adam Schiff’
Bish said she was taken aback that investigators focused almost entirely on her possible contact with government officials rather than on the substance of her allegations.
“I wanted to talk about Adam Schiff,” she said, noting the conversation went a different direction than what she was expecting.
She said investigators brought up certain statutes in a prior interview in October, asking her to explain the violations she believed Schiff committed. However, she said Thursday’s questioning was almost exclusively aimed at validating whether intermediaries between her and the government acted properly.
“If you have questions for Director Pulte, ask him,” Bish said. “Why are you asking me?”
Bish emphasized that she has conducted her own research independently since 2020.
“I gathered the evidence. I cross-referenced it. It’s all public record. I wrote the entire case myself,” she said. “I wasn’t asking for a reward — just a single tier of justice.”
Tip line tension and political pressure
Pulte, who President Donald Trump appointed as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, created a public tip line earlier this year for mortgage fraud submissions. Bish submitted her materials on Schiff there in April, and separately to the FBI.
Pulte and Martin are viewed as the central figures in several high-profile investigations Trump has publicly demanded, including the open case against former FBI Director James Comey. Both men have become trusted lieutenants for the administration’s efforts to pursue corruption allegations involving Schiff, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook.
Martin has been investigating Schiff since early August over allegations that he listed more than one property as his primary residence and falsified “bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms” on one of the properties. Schiff has denied wrongdoing, and his legal counsel has criticized Martin as “brazenly partisan and politically compromised,” along with accusing him of weaponizing the justice system to go after “perceived enemies.”
While the subjects of the inquiry are still unknown, Bish stressed her belief that Martin and Pulte did nothing wrong and warned that any suggestion of impropriety would be deeply concerning.
“I would be the first person to stand up and defend them,” she said. “I’d pay for it myself.”
Grand jury review raises broader questions
Bish said she was questioned for roughly an hour but was not placed under oath. She said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Kelly O. Hayes was not present, although line prosecutors from that office had asked her not to publicly name those who were in the room on Thursday.
She said she remains unsure whether the grand jury is examining possible misconduct by officials, intermediaries, or outside actors, but acknowledged that the questioning appeared designed to test the integrity of the investigation’s chain of custody.
“They could just be making sure the case is strong — that nothing inappropriate was done,” she said. “I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.”
Even so, Bish said the episode underscores why she is running for Congress in the Golden State.
ED MARTIN SAYS ‘THERE’S MORE’ ON SCHIFF BESIDES ALLEGED MORTGAGE FRAUD
“I won’t tolerate this nonsense,” she said.
The DOJ declined to comment.