According to a recent Fox News Digital investigation of Federal Election Commission records, Eric Swalwell, a Democratic Representative from California, outspent House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on travel and luxury lodgings over the last two years.
According to recent campaign reports, Swalwell’s 2022 election campaign spent nearly $583,000 on travel expenditures, far surpassing Pelosi’s $434,000 for the same period.
Swalwell’s campaign expenses reportedly included limos, planes, yachts, and hotels, demonstrating a constant preference for opulent amenities. The discovery raises concerns about the ethical use of campaign cash, especially as Americans across the country face growing inflation and greater prices for basic goods and services.
Fox reported:
Swalwell’s committee also burned through thousands of dollars in Paris, France, including $1,800 early last May at the five-star Hotel La Maison Champs-Elysées, where nightly rooms run from around $1,000 to $1,200 per night.
“The Maison Champs-Elysées in the heart of Paris’ ‘Golden Triangle’ is an elegant marriage of contemporary lines and unobtrusive luxury, this very special non-conformist hotel teases our expectations, with theatrical elements, a subtle, relaxed atmosphere, and attentive staff,” the hotel’s website states.
Weeks later, the campaign reported spending hundreds of dollars at Le Cafe Marly, which is situated in the “heart of the Tuileries” and just under the “arcades of the Louvre,” according to its website.
Inside Le Cafe Marly, patrons admire “classified woodwork” and views “of the museum’s sculpture room” in one of the “most beautiful” and “best kept” secrets in Paris. Its menu features items from Homemade Ginger Carrot Juice for $12 to Oscietre Imperial Caviar with two shots of Beluga for $120.
The use of campaign funds for personal or lavish expenses can damage public trust in the political process and suggest that politicians are disconnected from their voters’ interests and concerns, especially during times of economic hardship or catastrophe.
Politicians should be held to high ethical standards as public figures and representatives of the people, and any misuse or abuse of campaign finances can harm their credibility and effectiveness. Swalwell’s excessive campaign expenditures have raised major concerns regarding the ethical use of campaign funds, and he must be held accountable.
