Brian Fitzpatrick has gone Washington – and now he’s getting exposed.
The vulnerable Republican was hit with a cease and desist letter for running advertisements with verifiable lies and false accusations about Bob Harvie. It comes after Fitzpatrick spent money to meddle in the Democratic primary, and as he teams up with national Republicans on historically early ads.
Fitzpatrick continues to deploy the very kind of D.C. gutter politics that he once claimed he stood against. Local news outlet LevittownNow reported: “Sources close to the investigation told this news organization in 2023 that there was no evidence they had seen that Harvie was the target of the probe.” When asked by The Philadelphia Inquirer about his lies, Fitzpatrick “did not respond to additional requests for comment.”
DCCC Spokesperson Eli Cousin:
“Brian Fitzpatrick has gone Washington. He’s ripping a page straight out of his boss Donald Trump’s playbook by smearing fourth generation Bucks County native Bob Harvie with defamatory lies because he’s terrified he will lose in November and knows he has no record to run on. This is a defining moment in this campaign: After nearly a decade in D.C., Fitzpatrick has been caught with egg on his face by resorting to the very kind of gutter politics that he pretends to stand against.”
Read highlights from the Inquirer for yourself:
Philadelphia Inquirer: Democrat Bob Harvie sends cease-and-desist letter to Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, claiming defamation in campaign ads
- Attorneys representing Bob Harvie sent a cease-and-desist letter to U.S. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a five-term Republican incumbent facing a competitive reelection, and his campaign for a “series of defamatory allegations” that, they say, misleadingly portray Harvie’s role in an FBI investigation.
- A lawyer representing Fitzpatrick and his campaign confirmed receipt of the letter but did not respond to additional requests for comment.
- Harvie is not and never was under investigation, his lawyers said, nor was he the subject of the federal case, but mailers and television spots continue to blur the lines.
- The election fights are ramping up as both men compete to win Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional district in November, and with it, decide fate over which party controls the U.S. House. It’s one of four seats in the commonwealth being targeted by both political parties during the high-stakes midterm elections. Fitzpatrick has represented the area since 2017.
- “Brian Fitzpatrick’s lies are intended to deceive the voters and that’s a disgrace to this district,” Harvie said in a statement.
- The FBI in 2020 interviewed several people with connections to Falls Township and the Pennsbury School District, LevittownNow reported in September 2022.
- Harvie and several other officials were among those who testified before a grand jury in the probe, which has not been active since 2022, the campaign said. But Harvie and his lawyers in the letter maintain he “is not now and has never been the subject of any criminal investigation” or stealing money from taxpayers to throw himself a party.
- In total, Fitzpatrick has already spent $2.81 million from Jan. 1, 2025, to April 29, 2026, according to campaign finance reports — with roughly four months left to go before the campaign. During the entire 2024 campaign cycle, he spent $3.47 million.
- Fitzpatrick and the National Republican Congressional Committee have placed a joint ad buy starting Tuesday.
- National Democrats have also thrown resources behind him, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has listed Harvie on its “Red to Blue” list as a key seat to flip.
- “This is a defining moment in this campaign: After nearly a decade in D.C., Fitzpatrick has been caught with egg on his face by resorting to the very kind of gutter politics that he pretends to stand against,” said DCCC spokesperson Eli Cousin.
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