Rep. Eric Swalwell doubles down on anti-ICE platform

U.S. Congressman Eric Swalwell took an aggressive stance against immigration enforcement, promised to bring costs down and make homeownership a reality during a community town hall in Sacramento Tuesday night, marking the first stop on his gubernatorial campaign tour.

Hundreds of supporters showed up to the kickoff event to hear Swalwell’s answers to their most pressing questions ranging from immigration, affordability, housing, health care and more. Swalwell is currently vying to secure one of the top two spots on the June 2 primary ballot.

“The next governor of California has two jobs: to create a firewall between the president and his ICE agents and the immigrant community of California,” Swalwell said Tuesday night. “And two, to bring down the damn costs … I promise to be a fighter protector for the most vulnerable.”

Swalwell started out the Q+A with a hard condemnation of President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation agenda and the conduct of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers. He said if elected governor, he will take away the drivers licenses of ICE officers and prohibit them from holding state jobs if they refuse to take off their masks on duty; it’s unclear how Swalwell would achieve this, but there would certainly be legal challenges to doing so.

He called to abolish ICE and told agents that if he is governor, they should “hire the best lawyer you can afford.”

Swalwell’s heavy anti-ICE agenda comes after criticism from fellow gubernatorial candidates that have accused the congressman of not having a strong-enough stance on the agency’s actions. Swalwell was one of 75 Democrats who signed a June 2025 resolution to thank law enforcement, including ICE, for “protecting the homeland.”

On affordability, Swalwell told attendees his “core responsibility” will be to lower costs. He laid out an economic plan to address the state’s budget gaps through a new corporate tax and said he would move to use state funds to pay for health care for immigrants and low-income individuals.

He said the state should “build like crazy” to create a surge supply in rental housing to help alleviate the housing crisis. His first act in office, Swalwell said, would be to tell each housing agency in the state they have 90 days to either approve or deny every outstanding housing application.

The congressman also said he would work to make Juneteenth a paid state holiday, would support worker’s right to telework and focus on updated oversight of AI and the state’s data centers.

Swalwell was elected to represent the 14th district in the House of Representatives in 2012, which covers most of eastern Alameda County and part of central Contra Costa County. His anti-Trump crusades have landed him as the subject of multiple White House-backed investigations, including a mortgage fraud case and FBI push to release files of a years-old case Swalwell was a witness in.

The congressman told reporters Tuesday night that recent rumors of inappropriate behavior with young female staffers are the president and his followers' latest attempt to tank his campaign. Politico reported Tuesday that multiple left-wing influencers have said they are in contact with women who claim to have experienced sexual harassment while working with Swalwell. 

Swalwell maintains he has never had inappropriate relationships with his staffers.

“We expect there will be something new from this president or wherever it comes from in the next couple weeks, that's just the nature of campaigns, but what you're referring to, what little I know about it, is false,” the congressman said.

Swalwell said he is choosing to address the rumors now because he does not want voters to have any questions about his behavior.