The Brief

Jon Henry served in Iraq during the first Gulf War, in a unit meant to counter chemical warfare attacks. Luckily for him the attacks never happened, but he still earned full veterans benefits, including a home loan backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Henry, who lives outside Kansas City. Mo., fell behind on his mortgage after losing his job managing a manufacturing plant last October. And because of a move last month by the VA, vets like him with delinquent loans have far worse options than most other American homeowners who never served.

"My social media posts have not been nice to the director of the VA and have not been nice to Trump," Henry said. "And I voted for the guy!"

Henry was hoping to get help from the VA Servicing Purchase program, or VASP. In just the past year, according to the VA, it has helped more than 33,000 veterans and servicemembers who got behind on their loans by giving them a new, low-interest-rate mortgage.

But last month, out of fear of the potential cost, the VA abruptly did away with this safety net. It was the latest development in a VA mortgage saga that has whiplashed veterans between various enacted and cancelled programs and left thousands in fear of losing their homes. There are about 80,000 vets in the U.S. behind on their mortgages and heading toward foreclosure, according to data from ICE Mortgage Technology.

Navy Diver Matt Kelly in Salalah, Oman circa 2010 before doing an underwater sweep of a pier to look for improvised explosive devices.

"It's like, damn, you keep talking big about how you're doing all this for the veterans, but you just turned your back on 80,000 vets that have VA loans," Henry said.

Both Democrats and Republicans in Congress are questioning this move by the VA. And NPR has heard from more than 50 veterans around the country in recent weeks who say they are upset.

"I'm constantly terrified every day that some giant moving truck or some people are just gonna show up on the front door and kick us out and start throwing all of our stuff out of the house," said Mason Reale, a former Navy sonar technician in Lake Wales, Fla.

"It's infuriating and it's devastating," Matthew Kelly, a retired Navy Special Operations diver in San Antonio, Texas, told NPR.

The VA said in a statement to NPR that it "has a long-standing history of exploring options for Veterans to retain their homes." 

But the VASP program was created as a crucial last resort to keep veterans in their homes. Current mortgage rates of around 7 percent mean the other option for a VA loan, a loan modification, often sharply raises the monthly payment, making it unaffordable. So without VASP, many veterans will have to choose between selling the house, or getting foreclosed on.

That leaves vets in a worse position than most other homeowners. Mortgages backed by the government either through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA all have emergency options for delinquent borrowers that don't raise their interest rate or monthly payment. But that's not true anymore for veterans with loans backed by the VA, now that it's closed enrollment into VASP.

When VA secretary Doug Collins appeared before a U.S. Senate committee in May, he heard about it — and mostly from Republican lawmakers.

" I was just with a press conference back home with reporters back home," Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana told Collins. "They asked me about the VA servicing purchase program or VASP."

Cassidy cited NPR's reporting and asked about the VA "leaving veterans in the lurch."

Collins stood behind the VA's decision to end VASP. "The VASP program is something that we do not need to be in," he said.

Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins testifies on Capitol Hill on May 15.

(

Kevin Dietsch

/

Getty Images

)

Collins and some other Republicans don't like the way VASP works to help vets with these troubled loans — by buying them up and rolling the missed payments into a new loan with a low 2.5 percent interest rate. They worry that puts too much taxpayer money at risk since the VA holds the new loans on its own books.

At a recent house hearing, Collins said the program was going to cost "multiple billions of dollars" going forward and that "it's a program we should have never gotten into."

Collins said he's hoping Congress passes legislation to replace VASP with what's called a "partial claim" program. That takes the homeowners' missed payments and moves that debt to the end of the homeowner's loan term. Homeowners then start paying their mortgage again with their original interest rate and monthly payment.

VA used to have a partial claim option for veterans but it was suddenly shut down in late 2022 during the Biden administration. That, too, left thousands of vets with far worse options than other homeowners. After NPR reported on that misstep, the VA halted foreclosures for an entire year while it rolled out VASP to rescue vets from losing their homes. Now Trump's VA has scuttled that rescue program.

"We look forward to seeing how that legislation… the partial claim comes through," Collins told senators at last month's hearing.

But Democrats slammed Collins and the VA for basically ripping up the VASP safety net before anything has been set up to replace it.  Congressman Chris Pappas of New Hampshire said vets facing foreclosure are left just hoping Congress will act in time.

"That's not a good enough answer for my constituent," Pappas told Collins at another recent hearing. "Veterans I talked to don't agree with the abrupt ending to VASP," Pappas said.

Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) says he's concerned about veterans facing imminent foreclosure after the abrupt cancellation of the VASP program.

(

Sarah Silbiger/Pool

/

AFP via Getty Images

)

At the Senate hearing, Arkansas Republican John Boozman gently made that same point to Collins, asking what the VA can do for veterans right now, and for the unknown number of months that it may take for Congress to pass, and VA to set up, a new program.

"How does the VA plan to help veterans at risk of foreclosure?" Boozman asked. "You know it's one thing going forward, it's another thing for those individuals that are caught up in that now, and it makes it really difficult."

Asked by Pappas whether he would consider another foreclosure moratorium for vets, Collins replied: " I'm not gonna commit to a program on the fly here in the middle of the hearing. I understand your concern."

Navy Diver Matt Kelly (left) in Scuba gear on a training mission with divers from Trinidad and Tobago in 2012.<br>

(

Margaret Reborchick

/

U.S. Navy

)

The mortgage program has been a real concern for veterans like the former Navy diver Matt Kelly. Kelly suffered a brain injury during his service. He still gets headaches, and a few years ago they stopped him from working for a while.

"I was getting terrible migraines," he said. " I thought I needed time to deal with my medical stuff. "

Kelly's mortgage company allowed him to pause payments and told him he'd have an affordable way to catch up later. Indeed, VASP would have done that. But then the VA shut it down, leaving Kelly panicked about losing his home, and not knowing where he'd go with his wife and three young kids.

When NPR first spoke to Kelly in April, he said he'd been up most of the previous night, worrying what to do.

After his Navy service, Kelly worked in a search and rescue and underwater recovery unit for Grand Canyon National Park. 

 "I shake uncontrollably," Kelly said. "My wife woke me up and said I was shaking. But right now I'm more pissed off and angry."

After NPR asked the VA and Kelly's mortgage company, Loancare, about his situation, the president of the company called NPR to say that, in Kelly's case, the company actually made some mistakes that led to Kelly not getting enrolled in VASP in time. He said Loancare will eat the cost and give Kelly a new, low-interest-rate loan with the same terms as VASP.

Thousands of other vets who are still behind on their loans haven't been so fortunate. Both Jon Henry and Mason Reale initially had trouble qualifying for VASP and now the program is closed so they won't get the help. Kelly says he's worried about other vets.

"It's a responsibility of the VA. They announced this program, then they canceled the program, and they're leaving veterans hanging," Kelly said, adding, "their mission to protect veterans and care for veterans is not being fulfilled."

Meanwhile, Congress is working on a replacement for the VA home loan safety net. One bill has passed in the House and two bills have been introduced in the Senate. But it's not clear how long the process of standing up a new VA safety net might take, or how many veterans will lose their homes in the meantime.
Copyright 2025 NPR

Thousands more students joined walkouts Friday to protest the Trump administration’s militarized crackdown on immigrants, detainment of children and violence against U.S. citizens protesting the raids.

By mid-afternoon, nearly 12,500 students from more than 85 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District had walked out, according to a district spokesperson. Hundreds of students in other districts — from Pasadena and the greater San Gabriel Valley to Orange County — also marched in their communities.

At Olive Vista Middle School in Sylmar, about 100 students—some as young as 11—walked out of their science, English, and math classes, then walked to a nearby park.

For many students, Friday’s walkout marks the first time they’ve ever participated in a protest. And after months of watching federal immigration agents violently detain people on social media, the students told LAist that protesting — on behalf of their communities and in honor of Renee Good and Alex Pretti — filled them with a sense of freedom and power.

Isaac, a seventh grader, walked out of science class.

“This felt like I was breaking out of some sort of chamber,” he told LAist. “I felt like I was being free for once.”

Many of the 12-year-old’s family members are from Mexico and he’s been worried about what could happen if they’re detained.

“I'm standing up for my family and my friends, our community, really,” he said. “The most we [can] do is what we're doing right now.”

After months of being scared every time his parents go to work, Isaac said the protest was a type of salve.

“It makes us feel better,” he said. “It makes us stronger.”

M, right, is a sixth grader at Olive Vista and organized the school's walkout.

(

Mariana Dale

/

LAist

)

How to organize a middle school

A few weeks ago, M, an 11-year-old sixth grader at Olive Vista Middle School, asked her mom, Maritza Ocegueda, why students in Minnesota and elsewhere were walking out of school. LAist has agreed to refer to her solely by her first initial, after her mom raised concerns for her safety.

Ocegueda shared with her daughter that she walked out of Van Nuys High School as a junior in 2006 to protest proposed federal immigration legislation. Nearly 40,000 students from across Southern California joined the movement.

“ I was floored,” Ocegueda said. “It inspires me and gives me that little bit of hope… Maybe we can make a change.”

M decided to organize a walkout at her school concurrently with other students in the community. 

She made several lunchtime announcements about a walkout on Friday, Feb. 6 at 10:24 a.m.

“If you'd like to join, please come over here and if you have any questions, just ask me.”

Those announcements did not come easily to M, who is soft spoken and admittedly shy. “ I try to be the bravest I can,” she said. “ I want [my classmates] to understand how serious this [is] … [The federal government is not] letting people be themselves, like, they can't go to Home Depot without feeling unsafe.”

M, and several other students said some teachers and administrators discouraged their organizing. M said at one point she was pulled out of class for more than an hour to talk about the walkout.

“ One of the things I told the school [is] you dropped the ball because this is a learning moment,” Ocegueda said. However, she said she’s open to more conversations with school and district leaders on how to support students.

Maritza Ocegueda's daughter M organized Olive Vista Middle School's walkout. She said she's active in the community passing out food and clothes to unhoused neighbors and helping other people connect with resources.

(

Mariana Dale

/

LAist

)

A Los Angeles Unified School District spokesperson provided a statement that said students were informed that walkouts are not school-sponsored, there are spaces on campus for students to exercise their freedom of speech and that they would be marked absent for missed class periods. A similar message was posted to the school’s Facebook page Thursday afternoon.

“Administrators routinely meet with students to share safety information and clarify options for on-campus expression—not to threaten or discipline,” the statement read. “Leaving campus during instructional time without permission is discouraged; that message is about safety and supervision, not suppressing speech.”

M said that other teachers were more supportive and helped her spread the word about the walkout to other students.

“ What I've learned is students should not have to come protest 'cause that's what the adults should be doing,” M said. “Adults should know better to help out the community and students should not have to come out.”

Honks of support 

By mid-morning, students began to trickle out of Olive Vista.

As students joined the group of young activists, those already outside cheered and passing cars honked their horns in support. One SUV had a Mexican flag poking out of the sunroof.

Out by the curb, some of their parents, including M’s mom, were waiting. The adults encouraged the students to stick together and made sure the group waited for the light to turn before crossing the street to Sylmar Park.

" What's in my heart is that my parents are Mexican and I wanna support," said Jayden, an Olive Vista 6th grader.

(

Julia Barajas

/

LAist

)

Once they gathered, the middle schoolers marched to a nearby park, carrying homemade signs and flags of Latin America.

One student turned to a friend and nervously quipped: “I just really hope we don’t get shot or tear gassed.”

‘They don't understand how much we love our parents.’

In conversation with LAist, multiple students said they live in fear of being separated from their families. They also worry that their parents could be mistreated if they are detained by federal agents.

Eleven-year-old Alejandro, for instance, usually goes to Sylmar Park to play baseball. Today, he said, he went to the protest to honor his mom and dad, Mexican immigrants from the states of Michoacán and Jalisco.

To critics who think he should have stayed in class, he said: “They don't understand how much we love our parents.”

“I just don't like how Donald Trump is calling us ‘animals,’ when we're the ones working our asses off to live paycheck to paycheck, while he's up there sitting in his chair throwing out orders at Kristi Noem,” said eighth-grader Jesús, referring to the Secretary of Homeland Security.

The 13-year-old had his family and his neighbors in mind during the protest, along with 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, whose deportation the federal government is working to expedite.

“The little boy who was captured with his little bunny hat, he was captured and he was sent to prison,” Jesús noted. “And that's just crazy, because how are you going to let a little kid inside a prison?”

The federal immigration activity in the San Fernando Valley has also left him feeling nervous, even when he is on campus. “I'm trying to study and then I just get reminded: maybe there's somebody waiting outside to take us.”

Sixth grader Sophia’ said she walked out for her grandmother who’s from Mexico. "I wanna represent our people and show that we aren't bad," Sophia said. "We are actually, like, a great community."

(

Mariana Dale

/

LAist

)

As the students chanted and waved their signs, adults passed out snacks, water and pizza purchased with money donated from the community.

“They're here with clear intentions and they're here for a purpose,” said Michelle, the parent of another young protestor who requested LAist only use her first name. “I’m just proud of them.”

M, the organizer, said she wouldn’t have used that term to describe herself before the protest.

“Now that I'm looking at myself, I do see myself as a helper,” M said. She plans to continue helping her community, for example by distributing food and clothes to unhoused neighbors.

And she has some advice for any aspiring student organizers.

“ I was a shy kid, so I want them to be brave and speak up,” M said.

She said she planned to finish up the day at school after she ate.

Topline:

Why it matters: King Taco helped establish the template for the modern L.A. taqueria — shifting the city's understanding of tacos from the hard-shell, Americanized version to soft tortillas filled with carne asada, carnitas and tacos al pastor. As the late food critic Jonathan Gold noted, King Taco "solidified what we all think of as the modern Los Angeles taco sensibility."

Why now: The nomination comes as part of the city's ongoing effort to recognize Latino cultural landmarks.

The backstory: Founder Raul Martinez launched King Taco from a converted ice cream truck in 1974, eventually opening the Cypress Park brick-and-mortar location that became the chain's flagship. The business grew to 24 locations across Southern California, becoming a model for immigrant entrepreneurship and establishing key Mexican dishes like tacos al pastor and carnitas as L.A. staples.

What's next: The Cultural Heritage Commission will determine whether King Taco's original location retains sufficient historic integrity and continues to convey its cultural significance. If approved, King Taco would become one of the few designated restaurant landmarks recognizing Latino culinary contributions.

President Donald Trump's harsh immigration tactics are taking a political hit as new polls show a majority of Americans feel federal agents have "gone too far" in enforcing immigration laws.

It's not just Democrats who are concerned, but also independent voters who are expected to play a major role in the upcoming midterm elections.

"The base loves it, but it's an issue for the independent voters who decide elections in this country," said Alex Conant, a veteran Republican strategist. "Independents want a strong border and they want to deport criminals, but they're really uneasy with having masked federal agents going around in neighborhoods, deporting anyone that they see — as the Democrats are portraying it."

After months of aggressive enforcement, Trump's signature issue that twice got him elected is now turning into a liability ahead of this year's midterm elections.

The outcry over what many saw as militant tactics hit a fever pitch after the second fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen by immigration officers in Minnesota.

A new NPR/Marist poll shows that six in 10 Americans disapprove of the job federal immigration agents are doing.

Even typically loyal Republican supporters have called on the Trump administration to make changes and rebuild trust with law enforcement.

"They, being the White House, need to recalibrate on what needs to be done to make sure that that respect is going to be re-instilled," Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told conservative radio host Mark Davis.

Trump shook up the leadership of the Minneapolis operation, and directed his team to withdraw 700 federal officers.

"I learned that, maybe we can use a little bit of a softer touch," Trump said in an interview with NBC's Tom Llamas. "But you still have to be tough. We're dealing with really hard criminals."

It's a bit unclear what a "softer touch" actually means.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt largely defended the administration's enforcement efforts Thursday and pointed to different polling — from a Harvard/Harris survey — that she said showed support for their "deportation agenda."

"Nearly eight in 10 Americans say criminal illegal aliens should be deported," she said. "A solid majority also support deporting all illegal aliens, regardless of additional crimes."

She also said the administration is now prioritizing criminals who are in the country illegally.

Theresa Cardinal Brown, who worked on immigration policy under two presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said there may be an "operational pause" as the administration retools its efforts, both from a policy standpoint and a public relations standpoint.

"Operationally, you're not really thinking about politics as you're putting together an operation, said Brown, now a member of the Council on National Security and Immigration. "But politics comes into everything, right?"

She points to the announcement that body cameras would be deployed to federal immigration officers in Minneapolis, noting that while video can uncover when officers are doing something wrong, body cameras can also vindicate officers when they have done the right thing.

"I do think that probably the administration is thinking, 'Well, if we had body cam footage of our own, we could put our own perspective on it,' " she said.

Trump has a big incentive to get a handle on this crisis — and to do so quickly.

Conant, who previously worked on Marco Rubio's 2016 presidential campaign, said Trump has left an opening for Democrats to sound more reasonable on immigration ahead of the midterms.

"If he loses the immigration issue as a political winner, it's a real political problem," Conant said, "not just for Trump, but Republicans more broadly."

Copyright 2026 NPR