He argued that Pulte, angered by Swalwell’s criticism of president Donald Trump, violated the First Amendment’s “bedrock prohibition on viewpoint-based retaliation” by obtaining his private mortgage information and forwarding a criminal referral to the Department of Justice.
Lawyers for Swalwell said Pulte searched the private mortgage records of several prominent Democrats, targeting “one of the president’s most vocal and visible critics in Congress.”
Pulte also sent referrals involving other high‑profile Democrats, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff, as well as Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook, according to court filings.
In a statement, Swalwell campaign spokesperson Micah Beasley said the lawsuit effectively deterred further action. “We called his bluff. He never brought it,” Beasley said. “Case closed.”
Mortgage probe raised First Amendment, privacy concerns
Swalwell framed the fight in constitutional and privacy terms. “There’s a reason the First Amendment — the freedom of speech — comes before all others,” he said when the suit was filed.
