Convicted felon President Trump and HUD Secretary Scott Turner assail Section 8 tenants

Convicted felon President Trump and HUD Secretary Scott Turner assail Section 8 tenants

By Lynda Carson - May 3, 2025

On May 1st, International Workers Day, just one day before Trump’s unleashes his latest assault on HUD’s subsidized housing programs, millions of people hit the streets to fight back against the convicted felon Trump administration, and the Neo-Nazi Elon Musk’s and DOGE goons on-going attacks on the American public. See link below…

http://news.google.com/search?q=May%20Day%20international%20workers%20day%20protests&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen

On May 2, President Trump Releases “Skinny” Budget Request Foreshadowing Historic Cuts to HUD in Full FY26 Request

Looking at some of the latest Google News Wire Headlines, it’s a very threatening dangerous world for millions of HUD’s subsidized housing tenants feeling like they are being assailed by the convicted felon Trump administration and Trump’s loyalist lackey, the HUD Secretary Scott Turner.

According to one NPR headline, Trump budget would slash rental aid by 40% —and let states fill the gap if they want, other headlines horrifically declare, Trump’s budget request seeks $33B in HUD cuts, Black renters could be displaced by historic affordable housing cuts, Trump proposes deep cuts to several housing assistance programs, Housing assistance programs on the chopping block under trump’s $163B budget cut proposal, Trump wants to cut HUD budget by 40%, Trump seeks 43% cut to HUD in 2026 budget plan, and Washington plans on ‘deep cuts’ to Section 8 housing vouchers.

Click on the link below to see some of the latest Google News Headlines about the latest threats to HUD’s lifesaving subsidized housing programs…

http://news.google.com/search?q=Trump%20budget%20cuts%2C%20HUD&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen

Indeed. Presently, it’s a very threatening world for HUD’s subsidized housing tenants currently, including the blind, the chronically ill, those with disabilities, seniors, veterans, families with children, those who feel threatened with higher rents or soon to be evictions, homelessness, and dying on the cold hearted streets of America as a result of losing their HUD subsidized rental housing because of the wannabe dictator of the world, convicted felon President Donald J. Trump.

LOFTE (Leaders and Organizers for tenant Empowerment):

However, in an April 24, 2025, release that I received from LOFTE (Leaders and Organizers for tenant Empowerment) in part it states, “HUD Tenants Demand Congress Reject Trump’s Plan to Replace 2.3 Million Section 8 Vouchers with Block Grants.”

“Section 8 Voucher tenants from across the US today demanded immediate rejection by Congress
of President Donald Trump’s reported plan to replace 2.3 million Section 8 Vouchers with Block Grants to
the States. The plan for ‘deep cuts’ to Section 8 was leaked from the White House Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) in an April 17, 2025 article in the New York Times.

“This isn’t just policy—it’s punishment,” said Alice Robinson, a Voucher tenant, Executive Director
of Vision for Families in Dallas, and board member of the Texas Tenants Union. “You cannot gut HUD, cut
staff by nearly half, slash fair housing enforcement, and then say you care about American families.”
“Replacing Section 8 with Block Grants will devastate already underserved communities. Families,
seniors, and people with disabilities will be pushed further into poverty, segregation will surge, and the very
promise of equal opportunity will be stripped away.”

Adds Robinson, “I’ve been homeless before, and don’t want to be homeless again. We urge
Congress to listen to the people and reject this dangerous and inhumane proposal.”

“Only one in four people like me who need federal rent assistance can get it today—a major cause
of homelessness and the nation’s housing crisis,” says Eric Colin-Smith, a disabled, elderly Voucher tenant
in Boston, Massachusetts and board member of the Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants (MAHT). Adds
Charlotte Rodgers, a long-time Brooklyn tenant leader and co-founder of the Leaders and Organizers for
Tenant Empowerment (LOFTE) Network., “We need more, not less, Section 8 assistance to meet the
nation’s housing needs.

Already, Congress shortchanged Section 8 by $700 million in the FY 2025 Continuing Resolution
adopted in March, which could result in 32,000 fewer Vouchers by September 2025. Local housing
authorities in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts, are already notifying tenants of potential lease
terminations due to funding shortfalls.

Trump’s Section 8 proposal is a recipe of inequality, segregation, and crime against the most
vulnerable. If adopted, it would increase homelessness and poverty across the US. It will only make the
billionaire class richer, at the expense of the working class,” said Yanira Cortes, a Voucher tenant in Ocean
County, New Jersey, and a leader in the Greater Newark HUD Tenant Coalition. “We demand Congress
reject this proposal.”

President Trump Releases “Skinny” Budget Request Foreshadowing Historic Cuts to HUD in Full FY26 Request – Take Action!

In a May 2, release on the website for the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, in part it states, “The proposals outlined in this preliminary request are not only untenable, they are unconscionable,” said NLIHC’s Interim President and CEO Renee Willis. “At a time of rapidly rising rents, increasing economic hardship, and a record number of people experiencing homelessness, the Administration should be asking Congress to expand – not slash – federal investments in affordable housing and homelessness assistance, and working with Congress and communities to ensure these vital resources are available to every household in need.”

Overall, the “skinny” request would not only slash funding to vital affordable housing and homelessness assistance programs, it would redesign some of these programs entirely. The proposal would slash $26.72 billion from HUD’s rental assistance programs – including Housing Choice Vouchers (HCVs), Public Housing, Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), Section 202 Housing for the Elderly, and Section 811 Housing for Persons with Disabilities – by combining them and block granting them into one program, State Rental Assistance Block Grants. The proposal is estimated to amount to an unprecedented 43% cut to HUD rental assistance, would impose a two-year time limit on receiving rental assistance for “able-bodied adults,” and “encourage States to provide funding to share in the responsibility to ensure that similar levels of recipients can benefit from the block grant.”

Click below for the full NLIHC release…

http://nlihc.org/resource/president-trump-releases-skinny-budget-request-foreshadowing-historic-cuts-hud-full-fy26

Trump’s Latest Attack On HUD’s Subsidized Housing Programs:

Reportedly on May 2, 2025, according to NPR, “In its request for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the White House called the current system of federal rental assistance "dysfunctional" and proposed essentially ending Section 8 and other housing voucher programs. Its plan calls for cutting rental aid by about 40% and sending that money to states "to design their own rental assistance programs based on their unique needs and preferences.

It would also impose a two-year cap on rental assistance for able-bodied adults, which it said would ensure an even bigger share of federal subsidies went to the elderly and disabled.

The proposal comes as nearly half of all renters are considered cost-burdened and as homelessness is at a record high. Advocates say that if millions of poor people barely making ends meet were to suddenly see their rental aid shrink — or even end altogether — it would tip many over the edge.

"We would see, I think, homelessness escalate in a way that has been really unprecedented, and unheard of," said Kim Johnson, policy manager with the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
Already, federal rental aid falls far short of need. It's available for only about a quarter of all people eligible for it. "Cutting that really feels like cutting into bone," said Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness."

What does HUD Secretary Scott Turner, a Trump loyalist and supporter of Trump’s fascist agenda have to say about all of this? According to NPR, “Housing Secretary Turner has said the agency's ultimate goal is to "get people off subsidies and live a life of self-sustainability." On a recent trip to Arkansas, where the prospect of federal budget cuts came up, he said HUD's job is to "maximize the budget that we do have."

In contrast to what the HUD Secretary Scott Turner is claiming, according to a release on the website for the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials, NAHRO, NAHRO says Trump is proposing a $196 million cut to Self-Sufficiency Programs.

What does the Trump loyalist HUD Secretary Scott Turner have to say about that?

According to NAHRO, “The Trump Administration released their FY 2026 skinny budget proposal. Although the president’s budget is a political document and does not have the force of law, it does propose devastating cuts to housing and community development programs. The budget proposes the creation of a State Rental Assistance Block Grant, which would block grant funding for Public Housing, Section 8 Tenant-Based and Project-Based Rental Assistance, Housing for the Elderly, and Housing for Persons with Disabilities to the states – and cut these programs by an overall $26.718 billion. The budget would also institute a two-year cap on rental assistance for able bodied adults. NAHRO firmly opposes the scope of these cuts and block granting rental assistance to states. These cuts would have a devastating impact on millions of families across the country and block granting funding would make it easier for Congress to cut rental-assistance in the future.  

The budget also proposes eliminating the HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) programs, which provide critical resources to communities across the country. Eliminating these programs would make it more difficult for communities to provide needed services and increase the supply of affordable housing. Further, the budget would consolidate the Continuum of Care (CoC) program and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) into a more targeted Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program. Funding for individuals would be capped at two years. 

Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) are vital to communities nationwide, effectively managing resources to support vulnerable residents and uphold local accountability. They reduce homelessness, stabilize families, create jobs, and lead community development that enhances neighborhood safety and livability. By providing direct rental assistance, PHAs enable low- to middle-income families to afford housing near their workplaces, driving positive economic outcomes in communities of all sizes. The proposals in the President’s budget would have devastating impacts on communities across the country.”

“Proposed Cuts to Programs:
 

• Tenant-Based Rental Assistance, Public Housing, Project-Based Rental Assistance, Housing for the Elderly, and Housing for Persons with Disabilities: -$26.718 billion, a 43% cut (remainder of funds to combined and block granted to states with a two-year cap on assistance for able bodied adults). The budget does include $25 million specifically allocated in housing grants for youth aging out of foster care. 

• CDBG: – $3.3 billion, eliminating the program. 

• HOME Investment Partnerships Program: -$1.25 billion, eliminating the program. 

• Homeless Assistance Program Consolidations: -$532 million, a 12% cut (ESG, HOPWA, and CoC grants would be combined into one program). 

• Self-Sufficiency Programs: -$196 million, eliminating FSS, Jobs Plus, and ROSS.

Call to Action! 

Congress ultimately decides Fiscal Year 2026 funding – the budget proposal is just the beginning of a long appropriations process. Now is the time to contact your members of Congress and share how these harmful cuts would impact your community. Visit our Action Alert Center to send a letter urging support for affordable housing and community development programs, and to showcase the vital work of PHAs and community development organizations. 
You can also call your representatives directly. NAHRO has prepared talking points and state-level housing data flyers to help you make your case. 

Bay Area Section 8 tenants threatened by Trump administration with homelessness

Click below…

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2025/04/18/18875655.php


Blind Section 8 Tenant Charlie Jammer Wants To Be Heard By Others:

During my last interview with Charlie Jammer, a blind Section 8 tenant in Alameda, CA. 60 year old blind African American man named Charlie Jammer, who is a “Housing Choice Voucher tenant a.k.a. Section 8 voucher tenant” in Alameda, is very concerned about losing his housing if he loses his Section 8 voucher because of possible budget cuts to HUD’s subsidized housing programs, and he wants to be heard.

Charlie Jammer told me that has been blind since birth, and that he is originally from nearby East Palo Alto.

During my last discussion with Mr. Jammer, he said, “I am opposed to any budget cuts because they may force me to get into a program that I do not want to get into such as a nursing home, or a homeless shelter. If I lose my Housing Choice Voucher / Section 8 Voucher, or face major housing budget cuts to my voucher that makes it impossible for me to pay the rent where I reside, then I will have major problems. They do not treat blind people or people with disabilities very well in nursing homes, and a lot of people died in nursing homes during the covid-19 pandemic,” Jammer said.

Years ago in 2004, I first met a much younger Charlie Jammer in Alameda at the time, when I went to visit him in his apartment. I escorted him to a rally in front of the Alameda City Hall being organized by the Campaign for Renters Rights, to help save Section 8 tenants in Alameda who were being threatened with the loss of their Section 8 housing vouchers, due to budgets cuts occurring at the time to HUD’s subsidized housing programs.

I recall it being very dark in Mr. Jammer’s apartment when I met him, but it was nice, and very clean. Mr. Jammer was very gracious, and friendly. I liked him immediately, and knew that we had to help Charlie somehow to remain in his housing. At the time he was being told by the Alameda Housing Authority that he was losing his Section 8 voucher due to budget cuts, and because he did not have any “Section 8 seniority” in Alameda, because he recently transferred there from another county. However, Mr. Jammer was a longtime Section 8 voucher tenant since around 1995, and it did not make any sense to dump a poor blind man onto the cold hearted streets of America.

“I am proud of being independent,” Mr. Jammer went on to say, “but it has been getting harder for me because of budget cuts to the In-Home Support Services (IHSS) program. I really want to keep my independence. It’s extremely important to me.

I have been blind since I was born. I am originally from East Palo Alto, was born in 1962, am 60 years old, and am still independent thanks to the Housing Choice Voucher / Section 8 Voucher program, and IHSS.

I think that the people who are demanding the massive budget cuts to programs that help people like myself, should put themselves in my shoes, and see what they would do if they were to lose their independence, housing assistance, healthcare, food, or hope.

We have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution does not exclude us from that just because a bunch of rich people want to destroy our nation’s popular domestic programs that help out the poor, blind, elderly, and those with disabilities. I want people to know that I oppose any budget cuts that will harm myself and others. The people demanding the budget cuts and additional work requirements for the poor, blind, elderly, and those with disabilities who are receiving assistance from the much needed programs they are attacking should read the Constitution. These programs should get better funding, and should not face budget cuts. I oppose any and all budget cuts,” Charlie Jammer said.

According to the Public Housing Authority Director’s Association, PHADA, in a release yesterday on its website.

http://www.phada.org/Publications/Breaking-News-Administrator/View/ArticleId/18196/President-Trump-Releases-FY-26-Skinny-Budget-Request

President Trump Releases FY 26 “Skinny” Budget Request

Controversial Policy Changes Unlikely to be Enacted This Year

Today, the Trump Administration released its proposed budget for FY 26, outlining plans for discretionary spending. PHADA is deeply concerned about the severe funding reductions in the proposed budget, which represents a cut of over $32 billion to HUD programs compared to the enacted FY 25 levels.
 
Among the most troubling elements are proposals to block grant core rental assistance programs—including Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA), Public Housing, Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), Housing for the Elderly, and Housing for Persons with Disabilities.

Additionally, the budget proposes eliminating key initiatives such as the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), HOME, Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO), and the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP). It would also impose a major policy shift by introducing a two-year cap on rental assistance for able-bodied adults.

Although presidential budgets are generally considered policy “wish lists,” they do provide a clear indication of an Administration’s priorities. With controversial policies and just 5 months until the new fiscal year begins, the proposal is highly unlikely to be enacted. However, the messaging remains extremely concerning given the Administration’s influence over the Republican-controlled House and Senate. 

PHADA strongly opposes these cuts and the effort to block-grant rental assistance. The Association is actively engaged with congressional leaders to ensure adequate funding for HUD programs and oppose policy changes that would negatively impact our members in addition to the communities and residents they serve. 

An in-depth analysis will be provided in the upcoming edition of the Advocate.”

Additionally, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, CLPHA, sent out its own release to its members http://clpha.org/news/2025/president%E2%80%99s-budget-proposes-steep-cuts-hud-programs-2026 , called, “President’s Budget Proposes Steep Cuts to HUD Programs in 2026.”

Plus:

CBPP Statement: May 2, 2025 - For Immediate Release
Trump’s Budget Plan Continues Agenda of Hurting Those He Pledged to Help

http://www.cbpp.org/press/statements/trumps-budget-plan-continues-agenda-of-hurting-those-he-pledged-to-help

NLHP release, May 2, 2025, Trump’s destructive budget proposal.

http://www.nhlp.org/press-release/national-housing-law-project-on-trumps-destructive-budget-proposal-axing-life-saving-programs-endangers-our-families/

Lynda Carson may be reached at Newzland2 [at] gmail.com

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