FBI Director Kash Patel’s latest crusade against one of President Donald Trump’s enemies could turn out to be a blessing in disguise for its target.
Patel is reportedly leading a behind-the-scenes push to release investigative files regarding Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, 45, an outspoken Trump critic who is also running in California’s crowded gubernatorial primary.
Two shock polls released last week showed that all eight Democratic candidates are struggling to gain a foothold ahead of the June 2 open primary, which sends the top two candidates to the general election regardless of party affiliation. With so many Democrats seemingly weighing each other down, the party is at risk of being shut out of the general election in a state where it enjoys a 20 percent advantage in registered voters.
Patel has now handed Swalwell a “political gift” by putting a target on his back, which is likely to juice his visibility and favorability in California, where anti-Trump sentiment runs deep, Politico reported Tuesday.
Swalwell is already touting the fact that he is a MAGA target. During a press conference, he accused Trump and Patel of trying to “interfere in the California election” and “sneak two Republican loyalists” through the primary.
“The president dreams of a servant in Sacramento, a Western White House,” Swalwell said. “But, unfortunately for him, our campaign is winning.”
A University of California-Berkeley poll released last week found that Swalwell, at 14 percent of the expected vote share, is the top Democrat in the race, slightly ahead of former Democratic congresswoman Katie Porter, who is at 13 percent. They both trail the Republican frontrunners, Fox News commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who are at 17 percent and 16 percent, respectively.
Patel wants to release files related to the Bay Area representative’s association with Christine Fang, a suspected Chinese intelligence operative believed to have formed close relationships with American politicians, including Swalwell.
She fundraised for Swalwell’s 2014 re-election campaign and helped place at least one intern in his office, but he has never been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Fang.
Swalwell cut ties with Fang in 2015 after U.S. intelligence officials briefed him and other lawmakers on concerns that Chinese agents were attempting to infiltrate Congress.
Patel has nevertheless instructed FBI agents in San Francisco to dig up and quickly redact files related to Swalwell and Fang as part of a broader effort to bring a criminal case against him.
FBI leaders have also discussed possibly sending agents to China to see if Fang has any damaging information about Swalwell, or arranging a U.S. visa for her in exchange for intel on the congressman, The Washington Post reported over the weekend.
On Monday, lawyers for Swalwell sent the FBI a cease-and-desist letter asking officials to agree in writing not to release the files, according to the Post.
The letter, which accused Patel of trying to “smear” the lawmaker and harm his campaign for governor, warned that releasing the files would violate several laws, including the Privacy Act of 1974. The attorneys also alleged that releasing the files would violate the First Amendment because it would amount to targeting Swalwell over his criticism of the administration.
The FBI did not respond to a request for comment.
If Patel feels compelled to release anything damning, Politico writes that it will only bolster Swalwell’s claim that he’s being politically persecuted.
In the meantime, he’s been using the news to display his campaign as being under attack by the Trump administration.
“There’s only one candidate up here that Donald Trump fears will be the next governor of California,” he said in a social media video. “He sees me as a threat.”
