In a dramatic turn of events that has sent shockwaves through California politics, billionaire philanthropist Stephen Cloobeck has publicly severed ties with Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell, ejecting the California lawmaker from his Beverly Hills residence and demanding the return of a $1\u202fmillion donation that was earmarked for Swalwell\u2019s now\u2011abandoned gubernatorial campaign.<\/p>\n
Eric Swalwell has served as the U.S. Representative for California\u2019s 15th congressional district since 2013. A rising star within the Democratic Party, he was a front\u2011runner for the 2024 California governor\u2019s race before abruptly withdrawing from the contest in late May. The decision came amid a wave of accusations that have plagued his career.<\/p>\n
Multiple women\u2014some of whom worked directly for Swalwell\u2014have alleged that he engaged in sexual assault and other forms of misconduct. While Swalwell has consistently denied any wrongdoing, the allegations have prompted a criminal investigation. The accusations have also led to the suspension of his gubernatorial campaign and a flurry of public scrutiny.<\/p>\n
Stephen Cloobeck, a well\u2011known philanthropist and former CEO of a major tech firm, has long been a supporter of progressive causes. However, his relationship with Swalwell soured dramatically after the congressman\u2019s alleged misconduct came to light. In an interview with the California Post, Cloobeck revealed that he had to \u201cgo to hell\u201d with Swalwell, stating that the congressman was never welcomed back into his Beverly Hills mansion.<\/p>\n
According to Cloobeck, the mansion had been used as a backdrop for Swalwell\u2019s video statement in which he denied the allegations before withdrawing from the governor\u2019s race. The billionaire\u2019s frustration culminated in a public demand for the return of the $1\u202fmillion he had donated to the campaign. He also announced that he was \u201cwashing his hands of the Democrats\u201d and has since aligned himself with the Libertarian Party.<\/p>\n
The donation Cloobeck made was intended to fund a significant portion of Swalwell\u2019s gubernatorial campaign, covering everything from staff salaries to advertising and travel expenses. With the campaign now defunct, the money has no clear destination. Cloobeck\u2019s demand for repayment is rooted in the belief that the funds were misappropriated or, at the very least, no longer needed for their original purpose.<\/p>\n
While the exact legal status of the donation remains uncertain, the public nature of the dispute has raised questions about campaign finance transparency and the responsibilities of high\u2011profile donors when a candidate\u2019s political fortunes change.<\/p>\n
Swalwell\u2019s abrupt exit from<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a dramatic turn of events that has sent shockwaves through California politics, billionaire philanthropist Stephen Cloobeck has publicly severed ties with Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell, ejecting the California lawmaker from his Beverly Hills residence and demanding the return of a $1…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3490,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8869"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8869\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/influencerswiki.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}