Swalwell Took PG&E Cash While Promising Lower Rates
The California governor candidate says he will crack down on utility abuse. Donation records tell a very different story.
California voters are being told Eric Swalwell will crack down on utility companies and make life more affordable. There is just one problem. According to reporting from the New York Post, Swalwell has taken more than $113,000 from PG&E employees through his congressional campaign and PAC while pitching himself as the guy who will finally rein in the state’s most notorious utility giant. Because of course the man promising to fight the machine somehow found time to cash the machine’s checks.
The timing matters. Californians are already getting squeezed by some of the highest electricity costs in the country, and PG&E is not exactly the kind of company families associate with honesty, competence, or public trust. This is not some harmless bookkeeping story. It goes straight to whether voters should believe a politician who says one thing in campaign ads and does another when the donation records come in.
What the reports say
According to the New York Post, PG&E-related contributions to Swalwell date back to 2014, with the most recent recorded donation arriving last year. The outlet reported that PG&E rates have risen by 101 percent over the past decade.
Breitbart, citing the Post and Swalwell’s own campaign messaging, noted that the congressman has promised to “stop massive utility price hikes” and has said there must be “accountability and requirements” for utility companies.
Here are the core facts voters should keep in view:
More than $113,000 reportedly flowed to Swalwell from PG&E employees through his campaign and PAC
PG&E has become a symbol of California utility failure, rate hikes, and political coziness
Swalwell is campaigning on lowering costs and getting tough on utilities
California voters are entering a primary where affordability is already a major issue
That is not a minor contradiction. That is the whole argument.
Why PG&E is political poison in California
PG&E is not just another donor with a bland corporate logo and a generic lobbying operation. The company has spent years under public anger over rate hikes, catastrophic failures, and criminal convictions.
The New York Post report pointed again to the Camp Fire disaster in 2018, which killed 85 people and devastated Paradise, California. The company also pleaded guilty in connection with the tragedy. Earlier, PG&E was convicted on felony counts related to the San Bruno pipeline explosion that killed eight people and destroyed dozens of homes.
So when a California Democrat stands up and says he is going to protect families from utility abuse while taking money tied to PG&E, voters do not need a PhD in ethics to spot the problem.
They just need a memory.
Swalwell’s own pitch
Swalwell’s campaign website says he will “stop massive utility price hikes by ending monopoly markups and refinancing expensive debt to directly lower your monthly rates.” That sounds great in a digital ad. Most things do.
But if you are going to run as the accountability candidate, maybe do not spend more than a decade accepting money from the utility monopoly you now say needs to be restrained.
That is where the credibility gap opens up.
“As governor, I’ll hold utilities accountable and expect those who profit the most to help fix the climate crisis,” Swalwell said, according to the New York Post.
“We must have accountability and requirements for the utility companies,” Swalwell said in social media ads cited by Breitbart.
Fine. Then start with campaign accountability.
Republicans see an opening
This story lands at a moment when California’s governor race is already turning into something Democrats did not want to see. ABC10 reported that the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies’ March poll showed Republican Steve Hilton at 17 percent and Republican Chad Bianco at 16 percent, ahead of the fractured Democratic field. Swalwell and Katie Porter were both at 13 percent, while Tom Steyer sat at 10 percent.
Under California’s jungle primary system, the top two finishers advance regardless of party. Translation: Democrats can absolutely fumble this if they keep dividing their own vote while Republicans consolidate around a message of cost, crime, and competence.
Steve Hilton did not miss the chance to put Swalwell’s PG&E ties in plain English. According to the New York Post, Hilton said Democrats gave Californians some of the highest electric bills in the country and asked why voters should trust a Democrat, especially one he called a “PG&E puppet,” to fix it.
That is harsh language. It is also the kind of attack that sticks when families are staring at their monthly bills.
What this means for California voters
If you live in California, this story is not really about one donation total. It is about the old game where politicians campaign as reformers after years of benefiting from the system they now claim to oppose.
Voters should ask basic questions:
If PG&E is the problem, why take the money for so long?
If utility accountability is urgent now, why was it not urgent when the checks were clearing?
If Democrats want to talk about affordability, why does the state keep producing policies and politicians that make basic living more expensive?
You do not have to be cynical to notice the pattern. You just have to pay attention.
Further Reading
Breitbart: Swalwell Gets $113K from CA Utility Co. While Vowing to Cut Rates
New York Post: Eric Swalwell demands utility crackdown but cashed $113K in PG&E checks
ABC10: Republican candidates Hilton and Bianco lead California governor poll
California families have been paying more for years while the political class keeps promising relief right after it cashes the checks. That is the racket. The only real question now is whether voters are finally tired of funding it.