Swalwell’s lawsuit alleges that a Trump housing official abused his position to target Trump critics

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal lawsuit filed Tuesday by U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell accuses the Trump administration’s top housing regulator of abusing his position to misuse private mortgage records belonging to Swalwell and other Democratic critics of the Republican president.

Swalwell filed suit against Federal Housing Finance Agency Administrator Bill Bolt less than two weeks after Bolt formally referred the California Democrat to the Justice Department for possible criminal prosecution on mortgage fraud charges.

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Swalwell is seeking a court order for Bolte and his agency to withdraw the criminal referral. His lawsuit, which also seeks unspecified monetary damages, accuses Bolt of violating federal laws and Swalwell’s First Amendment free speech rights.

Bolte did not immediately respond to a text message and phone call seeking comment on the lawsuit.

Swalwell, who is running for governor of California, served as House manager in the 2021 impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. His lawsuit alleges that Bolte played an “instrumental role in supporting President Trump’s campaign of retaliation against his political opponents.”

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“These efforts led the Department of Justice to conduct a series of high-profile criminal investigations and prosecutions that clearly targeted some of the President’s most vocal critics,” the suit says.

Bolte’s November 13 referral to the Justice Department alleges that Swalwell falsely claimed his Washington, D.C., home as his principal residence under a mortgage agreement to secure better loan terms. Swalwell denies the allegation, saying he filed an affidavit that the D.C. home would be his wife’s primary residence and not his home.

The campaign by Bolt and Justice Department official Ed Martin to investigate Trump’s political rivals for mortgage fraud was marred by errors, including exaggerated claims that were easily debunked. Polte’s ethics officials were investigating whether he and his allies improperly accessed mortgage data.

Bolte, the self-appointed head of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has upset the housing industry by purging ethics officers and top leaders at the two giant government-sponsored lending companies.

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“Polte’s brazen practice of obtaining confidential mortgage records from Fannie Mae and/or Freddie Mac and then using them as a basis for referring individual homeowners to the Department of Justice for prosecution is unprecedented and unlawful,” Swalwell’s lawsuit says.

In August, the Justice Department appointed Martin as a special prosecutor to assist in mortgage fraud investigations along with other prominent Democrats, including U.S. Senator Adam Schiff and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Martin also serves as director of the Justice Department’s “Arming Task Force,” which is examining Trump’s claims of anti-conservative bias within the department.

A federal judge on Monday dismissed the separate criminal cases against James and former FBI Director James Comey, concluding that the prosecutor who brought the charges at Trump’s request was appointed illegally.