In this screenshot taken from a congress.gov webcast, Impeachment Manager Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) speaks on the second day of former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial at the U.S. Capitol on February 10, 2021 in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n
congress.gov | Getty Images<\/p>\n
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., has dropped his lawsuit<\/a> against Bill Pulte<\/a> which accused the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency<\/a> of weaponizing mortgage fraud investigations to target critics of President Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n Swalwell \u2014 a California gubernatorial candidate \u2014 filed the lawsuit in November<\/a>, arguing that Pulte unlawfully accessed and disclosed his private mortgage records in violation of federal privacy law and the First Amendment’s “bedrock prohibition on viewpoint-based retaliation.”<\/p>\n “Director Pulte has combed through private records of political opponents. To silence them,” Swalwell\u00a0posted<\/a>\u00a0in a statement at the time on X. <\/p>\n Swalwell, a seven-term congressman and House\u00a0impeachment<\/a>\u00a0manager during Trump’s\u00a0second impeachment<\/a>, has long been one of the most vocal critics of the president.<\/p>\n Pulte had referred Swalwell to the Department of Justice over claims that the congressman may have made false or misleading statements in loan documents for a Washington home. Swalwell called the claims “patently false.”<\/p>\n Swalwell’s decision to drop the suit comes as his gubernatorial opponents have raised questions about his eligibility to run for California’s<\/a> top post, with rival Democrat Tom Steyer<\/a> accusing Swalwell of living in California “on paper only<\/a>.”<\/p>\n A separate lawsuit attempting to block Swalwell from appearing on the ballot brought by conservative filmmaker Joel Gilbert<\/a> was tentatively rejected<\/a> Friday, after a California judge found sufficient evidence that he had lived in the state for the required five years.<\/p>\n Pulte did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Swalwell campaign also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. <\/p>\n