GOP Governor Candidate Flails When Confronted With Own Words

But Collins had the receipts, and read them as Hilton stood just feet away.“I saw the two of you chatting earlier, you and Mr. Hilton. You’ve actually had some harsh words for your fellow Republican,” Collins said. “You’ve called him ‘unethical and dishonest’ and said that he is trying to ‘manipulate Californians’ and ‘swindled his way into the Republican side.’ Are you saying that you don’t think Republican voters can trust Mr. Hilton?”“I don’t know where that came from. I would tell you, in my entire life I don’t think I’ve used the word ‘swindle,’” Bianco said. “So I don’t know if you were quoting something or if you were saying that—if you were saying that.”“It’s a quote from you to The Atlantic,” Collins clarified.Hilton, a California businessman who previously worked for British Prime Minister David Cameron, has been endorsed by Donald Trump. He is currently tied in the polls with Democrat Xavier Becerra, pulling roughly 18 percent of the vote.Bianco tried to qualify his language, and in doing so again denied having ever used the word “swindle.”“I don’t know where that came from. I would never, I would never use the word ‘swindled,’” he stuttered.He then claimed he was the only person on the stage whose job—as a local law enforcement official—revolved around the truth, noting that “right now, lying can get me removed from my job.”But Collins offered more specifics, quoting directly from an interview that Bianco did with KBAK in March in which the sheriff asserted that Hilton was trying to figure out how he can “manipulate Californians to put him in this position at a time when we know that California Democrats have failed and we are going to vote for a Republican governor, and he has swindled his way into the Republican side, even though he’s not.”“I probably did say that,” Bianco admitted. “I didn’t use the word ‘swindle’, whatever it was. But that context, I will agree with that 100 percent.”“So you did say the quote?” Collins pressed.“Sure,” Bianco said.OMG LOL Collins: You've called Hilton unethical and dishonest and said that he swindled his way into the Republican side.Bianco: I've don’t think I’ve ever used the word swindle. I don't know if you were quoting something.Collins: It's a quote from you to The Atlantic. pic.twitter.com/kVR5A2cpQS— Acyn (@Acyn) May 6, 2026It would be a shocking turn of events if Bianco’s blustery performance did anything but hurt him at the polls. During the same debate, the 58-year-old touted his Oath Keeper alliance until one of his opponents, Democrat Antonio Villaraigosa, reminded him that the extremist militia group participated in the January 6 insurrection.“You’re an Oath Keeper. We all know that,” Villaraigosa said.“And I’m very proud of it,” Bianco interjected.“I don’t think an Oath Keeper is qualified to be governor,” Villaraigosa continued.Bianco later said he had sworn an oath three times “to defend my Constitution.”“To everyone who wants to lie and get emotionally spun up about the Oath Keeper organization, I want you to go read the mission statement—” Bianco continued, before he was interrupted by another voice on stage: “I saw them on CNN attacking the Capitol.”“Do you still consider yourself a member of that group, to be clear?” asked Collins.“No,” Bianco replied.