Eric Swalwell, a disgraced former congressman from California, has continued to allocate substantial funds to lawyers even after officially ending his campaign. The New York Post reported that his campaign spent $150,000 more on legal fees in July alone [1], while another article detailed how he had already paid $50,000 to celebrity defense attorney Sara Azari as of July 16th [2]. These expenditures have come under scrutiny amid ongoing investigations into sexual assault allegations against Swalwell. The California Post revealed that his attorneys had also threatened Tom Steyer’s campaign just before the scandal broke in July [3].
The sources agree on the significant financial outlay by Swalwell's campaigns, with one article noting a combined $360,000 spent from congressional and gubernatorial accounts within weeks of his resignation [4]. However, there is no consensus on whether these legal fees are being used to defend against the sexual assault allegations or for other purposes. The sources also do not agree on the exact timing of the spending or the specific amounts involved.