FBI accused of being weaponized in Trump's retribution campaign against his critics

According to reporting from The Washington Post, FBI Director Kash Patel is reportedly leading a behind-the-scenes push to release investigative files on Rep. Eric Swalwell that date back more than a decade, as part of a broader effort to build a criminal case against the California Democrat.

Sources told the Post that Patel recently instructed FBI agents in San Francisco to locate and quickly redact files related to Swalwell and Christine Fang, a suspected Chinese intelligence operative who reportedly developed close ties to the congressman during his 2014 re-election campaign.

According to the Post's reporting, FBI leaders have also discussed the possibility of sending agents to China to determine whether Fang possesses damaging information about Swalwell, or alternatively, arranging a U.S. visa for her in exchange for intelligence on the California gubernatorial candidate—who is also an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump.

The investigation into Fang dates back more than a decade, when the FBI examined whether she had formed close relationships with American politicians, including Swalwell, in her capacity as a suspected Chinese intelligence operative. Records show she helped raise funds for Swalwell's 2014 re-election campaign and assisted in placing at least one intern in his office.

However, no public evidence of wrongdoing by Swalwell has emerged from the investigation. A two-year House Ethics Committee inquiry into the matter concluded in 2023 with the Republican-led panel determining to "take no further action."

Patel's reported efforts to release the files have sparked concerns among FBI personnel about potentially compromising law enforcement sources and investigative techniques, according to the Post.

When contacted by the Daily Beast regarding the matter, the FBI did not immediately respond. However, an FBI spokesperson told the Post that the Post's reporting was "incorrect," stating: "This FBI, being the most transparent in history, prepares documents for numerous different reasons, including for release to different agencies and departments to further review investigations that may have been opened under previous administrations."

Sources also told the Post that the FBI has faced difficulty constructing a criminal case against Swalwell. In 2025, Bill Pulte, director of Trump's Federal Housing Finance Agency, referred Swalwell to the Justice Department for criminal investigation based on allegations of mortgage and tax fraud related to his Washington, D.C. residence.

Swalwell, a longtime Trump critic who served as a House impeachment manager during Trump's second impeachment trial in 2021, responded to the reporting by characterizing the White House's actions as targeting political opponents.

"As was Trump's mortgage case against me, this decade-old story is, of course, nonsense," Swalwell said in a written statement. "The reason Trump is so desperately trying to stop me is not because I'm running for Governor of California, but because now I'm the favorite."

He added: "Kash Patel should be spending every moment trying to keep us safe. Not score political points."