Former Trump Family Aide Appointed To Head NYC Housing Program

Lynne Patton of the Eric Trump Foundation during the third day of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Wednesday, July 20, 2016. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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The Department of Housing and Urban Development on Monday announced that Lynne Patton, a former aide to members of President Donald Trump’s family, will oversee federal housing programs in New York and New Jersey.

“Patton will be responsible for the Department’s programs and operations in the Region’s two states,” the department said in a statement. “Patton joins Region II from HUD’s Office of the Secretary where she served as Senior Advisor and Director of Public Engagement.”

Patton confirmed to the New York Times that she will serve as the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s regional administrator overseeing the department’s New York and New Jersey office.

“As always we do not get ahead of official announcements,” White House spokeswoman Kelly Love told TPM in an email. Love noted the position was department-appointed and not part of the White House’s purview.

Patton has no notable experience in housing or development policy.

After joining Trump’s administration, Patton worked at HUD as a senior adviser and director of public engagement for “several months” before Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson recommended her for the appointment, according to a report by the New York Times.

On the campaign trail in 2016, Patton was a staunch defender of then-candidate Trump. In May 2016, she pushed back against accusations of racism and misogyny levied against Trump’s campaign and insisted that the Trump family worked to elevate the careers of minority women.

Patton also spoke at the Republican National Convention and defended Trump’s personal use of funds from his charitable foundation, arguing that some of the money was in fact his, “no ifs, ands or ways about it.”

Before joining Trump’s administration, Patton served as vice president of the Eric Trump Foundation, which is currently the subject of an investigation by the New York attorney general’s office.

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Notable Replies

  1. “Before joining Trump’s administration, Patton served as vice president of the Eric Trump Foundation”

    I feel like Al from Happy Days, shaking his head and only able to say “Yep. Yep, yep, yep.”

  2. There have been a number of background stories on how startlingly incompetent Ms. Patton is for this position, even for A Drumpfer.

    She makes Kellyanne Conway look like a cross between Madame Curie and Margaret Thatcher.

  3. “We need to run the government like a business!”

    Someone running a business would not put a totally unqualified person into an executive role. Unless it was someone like Trump running that company, which explains why almost every business he ever got involved with went bankrupt.

  4. As a retired affordable housing developer/financier/manager professional, I am appalled and quite highly insulted by this knowledge-nothing appointment. We should expect better. There are knowledgable experts and career professionals eminently qualified for this high post. But, then, look at who her boss is. Wth any luck they will merely be placeholders throughout the Trump regime and will do no new harm (not that doing nothing doesn’t intrinsically harm the mission).

  5. Tomorrow Barron Trump gets command of the Pacific Fleet.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

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