“Frank [Luntz] has been a friend of mine for more than 30 years. … I’ve rented a room from Frank for a couple of months, but don’t worry, I’m back to — going back to where I normally am, on my couch in my office. But, yes, we pay fair market rate.”
— House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), in an interview on Fox & Friends, May 4
Kevin McCarthy was criticized the other night by Tucker Carlson of Fox News Channel for renting an apartment in the District from pollster Frank Luntz, a longtime Republican pollster who also does a lot of corporate work (and has been critical of former president Donald Trump).
“Kevin McCarthy promises Republicans he shares their values,” Carlson said. “He tells them he’s on their side. He says he will fight for them against permanent Washington, the forces that would like to destroy their lives … and at the end of the day, Kevin McCarthy goes home to Frank Luntz’s apartment in Penn Quarter and laughs about it.”
In his response, McCarthy shrugged off the comment and described Luntz as a friend he first met in 1994, when he was a staff member for then-Rep. Bill Thomas (R-Calif.). “Frank’s not a lobbyist. Frank’s a friend I knew for 15 years before I ever got in,” McCarthy said, apparently referring roughly to when he became a member of Congress in 2007.
Actually, that friendship had already included some business. Luntz conducted a poll in 2000 for yrock.com, which McCarthy started when he was national chairman of the Young Republicans. Yrock was an abbreviation for Young Republican Online Community Network.
So what kind of apartment is this?
It’s a 7,000-square-foot space — a combination of four penthouse apartments — with what appear to be homeowner’s association (HOA) fees of nearly $5,000 per month.
In August and September of 2018, Luntz purchased four adjoining penthouse units in the Clara Barton building in Penn Quarter for a total of almost $4.3 million. Combined, the units totaled 6,960 square feet and had 12 bedrooms, 12 full bathrooms and four half-baths. The HOA fees alone on the units are $4,976 per month, according to Redfin.com.
The three-level units, each 1,740 square feet, are:
1146 — $1,050,000 purchase price, three bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms, HOA dues $1,244 a month 1147 — $1,080,000, three bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms, HOA dues $1,244 a month 1148 — $1,080,000 three bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms, HOA dues $1,244 a month 1149 — $1,080,000, three bedrooms, 3½ bathrooms, HOA dues $1,244 a month (The link to 1148 has good photos of the property.)
Luntz set about merging the units in November 2019. Neighbors complained about the vibrations caused by the removal of three sets of stairs. “Recent jackhammering to remove stairs from the units generated a heightened level of concern about both noise and vibration,” said a notice from the Clara Barton board in 2019. “Residents expressed concern about impacts to their day-to-day activities, their units, and the building as a whole.”
Besides the “room” he rented, McCarthy would have had access to a 24/7 concierge, a rooftop pool, a fitness center, a media room, a business center, and a party room with a bar and pool table.
McCarthy’s latest financial disclosure, covering 2019, shows assets of between 265,000 and $600,000 (generating income of between $17,505 and $50,200) with liabilities between $100,002 and $200,000. (Correction: an earlier version of this article incorrectly listed the year for the disclosure and McCarthy’s reported assets.)
McCarthy’s spokesman did not respond to requests for comment, including a request for the “fair market rate” paid by McCarthy. Luntz also did not respond to a request for comment. An unnamed McCarthy spokesman told the Daily Wire: "McCarthy rented a room of approximately 400 square feet, and under House Ethics guidelines, calculated the fair market amount at $1,500/month by comparing what other members of Congress were also paying to live in the building and additional comparables for the space in the building and neighborhood.”
According to Apartments.com, a studio or one-bedroom apartment in a nearby premium building would run about $5,000 per month. A Post colleague reports she paid $2,350 (not including utilities) for a one-bedroom in the Clara Barton building up until February.
“Tangible gifts are generally valued at the item’s fair market value, even if the item is not typically for sale,” House ethics rules say. “Fair market value is the item’s retail price, not the wholesale price, or the reasonable estimate of an item’s cost if it were available for sale. You may use the lowest price available to the general public to value a gift.”
Gifts based on personal friendship are allowed, but “if the gift’s fair market value exceeds $250, you must seek formal Committee approval to accept a gift offered because of personal friendship,” the rules add.
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587 Comments Image without a caption By Glenn Kessler Glenn Kessler has reported on domestic and foreign policy for more than three decades. Send him statements to fact check by emailing him, tweeting at him, or sending him a message on Facebook. Twitter
Kara Swisher @karaswisher - Such a shame for the GOP that they can’t get this guy sprung from social media jail, so he can manically post these love letters all over the Internets. Stop your yammering @GOPLeader & @tedcruz — The Facebook Oversight board just did you a solid. Flowers would be nice.
Meridith McGraw @meridithmcgraw · 18h
In a new statement Trump goes after Rep. Cheney...but also Mike Pence and Mitch McConnell
Republican Members of Congress: The upcoming leadership vote on Liz Cheney’s role as a leader of the House Republican Conference is about much more than her. The vote is a referendum on the “Big Lie” and whether the Republican Party will continue to embrace a conspiracy theory that poisons our constitutional republic.
Liz Cheney is a principled conservative. In fact, on policy, she is more conservative than most members of the House of Representatives. She opposed large spending initiatives like the $1.5 trillion infrastructure bill last July. She opposed expansion of the Affordable Care Act. She is unapologetically pro-life. Liz Cheney is not a Democrat and this is not a vote about policy disagreements.
House Republicans are mad at Liz Cheney because she possesses the temerity to call out Donald Trump’s lies—about the 2020 election and those that led to the January 6th terrorist attack on our Capitol.
Facts don’t care about House Republicans’ feelings. The election was not stolen; Donald Trump did not win; and the terrorists who attacked our Capitol on January 6th were not peaceful. They deserve no space or apology in American life. Liz Cheney knows that – and any Republican who votes to remove her from House leadership tells the world that the truth doesn’t matter.
We are calling on every member of the House Republican Conference to do three things:
MAKE THE VOTE ON LIZ CHENEY PUBLIC so that your constituents can see where you stand on these critical issues of truth, honor, and our constitutional republic.
PUBLICLY ANNOUNCE YOUR PERSONAL SUPPORT for Liz Cheney continuing her role in House leadership, especially if the conference vote is held in secrecy.
CONDEMN THE BIG LIE. Once and for all, disown the tyranny of lies that led to the tragic events of January 6th and which continues to poison our constitutional republic.
If you fail to do any of the above, the American people can and should assume that you have no respect for facts, no respect for truth, and no respect for our constitutional republic.
Less than 14 days after the Constitutional Convention kicked off in Philadelphia, George Washington wrote a letter to his French friend, Marquis de Lafayette, explaining that his primary motivation in attending the Convention was to prevent a demagogue from seizing power in our young nation and destroying it. He saw “anarchy and confusion” as the chief threats that could threaten the rule of law and security of the American people. Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts also saw this threat clearly. “Demagogues are the great pests of our government,” he said. They are the “pretended patriots,” the unprincipled schemers who prey on the people’s passions to steer the masses toward “baneful measures” through “false reports.”
We know the Founders would have stood next to Liz on the Big Lie. Stand with them and put principles first.
The American people are watching.
Principles First
We know the Founders would have stood next to Liz on the Big Lie. Stand with them and put principles first.
The American people are watching.
Principles First Please sign as you would like your name to appear on the letter. ... We know the Founders would have stood next to Liz on the Big Lie. Stand with them and put principles first.
The American people are watching.
Principles First Please sign as you would like your name to appear on the letter.
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