Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Housing Finance Agency, accusing its director of abusing his power by forwarding a criminal referral related to the congressman’s mortgage.
Swalwell’s suit is the first challenge to FHFA Director Bill Pulte, who has issued four criminal referrals accusing Democrats of mortgage fraud. The lawsuit seeks to force Pulte to withdraw the referral, arguing that he improperly obtained the underlying information.
“Pulte has abused his position by scouring databases at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — two government-sponsored enterprises — for the private mortgage records of several prominent Democrats. He then used those records to concoct fanciful allegations of mortgage fraud, which he referred to the Department of Justice for prosecution,” Swalwell’s legal team wrote in the suit, calling the lawmaker “one of the president’s most vocal and visible critics in Congress.”
Swalwell, now running for California governor, has not been charged since Pulte issued the referral earlier this month. The DOJ has already brought mortgage-related cases against Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and New York Attorney General Letitia James, though the charges against James were dismissed Monday. Pulte also referred Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA). All four officials deny any wrongdoing.
Swalwell claims that Pulte violated the Privacy Act of 1974 by accessing and analyzing his mortgage data, saying the law “was designed to bar federal officials from leveraging their access to citizens’ private information as a tool for harming their political opponents.” The filing also reveals new details about Pulte’s referral to the Justice Department, alleging that Swalwell improperly claimed two different properties as his primary residence.
“The allegations in Pulte’s referral are patently false. Indeed, Representative Swalwell explicitly disclaimed any intent to occupy the District of Columbia home as his primary residence in a sworn affidavit attached to his mortgage agreement. That affidavit made clear that the home would be his wife’s primary residence — not his own. Representative Swalwell was and remains a permanent resident of California,” the suit states. “But Pulte’s referral to the Justice Department was not only a gross mischaracterization of reality. It also represented a gross abuse of power that violated the law.”
The investigations led by Pulte and Ed Martin — a Justice Department special attorney for mortgage fraud — are facing growing scrutiny. Federal prosecutors have convened a grand jury in Maryland and questioned a witness about Pulte, Martin, and others “claiming to be working for or at the direction” of the pair. According to ABC News, prosecutors are also examining whether Martin improperly deputized two people outside the Justice Department to help investigate Schiff.
ALERT: Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) files federal civil lawsuit vs Trump housing official Bill Pulte, alleging Pulte violated Swalwell privacy & 1st Amend. rights
Suit asks court to direct Pulte to withdraw criminal referral & pay compensatory damageshttps://t.co/e5GTRVVff8
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) November 25, 2025
