On Wednesday, Republican Senator Rand Paul said Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell should resign from Congress after it was reported that he was intimately involved with an alleged Chinese spy.
Paul made his comments during a Fox News interview with anchor Sandra Smith.
"He was the most over-the-top critic of President Trump on Russia collusion, and it turns out he's sleeping with a Chinese spy."@RandPaul says @ericswalwell "ought to just resign from Congress," after his association with an alleged Chinese spy was revealed. pic.twitter.com/84bmxfmHsn
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) December 16, 2020
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Sen. Paul said if Rep. Swalwell doesn’t resign, he should at the very least be removed from the House Intelligence Committee.
Smith asked Paul whether Swalwell should step down from his position on the House Intelligence Committee, which gives him special access to classified information.
“I think, to be careful and to [be] cautious, he should actually resign from the intelligence committee,” Paul replied.
“If he’s not willing to do that, he should be removed from the intelligence committee,” Paul said.
The GOP senator then noted the rank hypocrisy on the part of Swalwell – who was one of the most vocal proponents of the Trump-Russia collusion theory.
“But I also think that — what hypocrisy!” Paul said. “This is a guy who was hurling stones and accusations, all kinds of false accusations at President Trump. ‘Oh, he’s controlled by spies,’ and this and that.”
17 top Republicans ask Nancy Pelosi to remove Eric Swalwell from Intelligence Committee https://t.co/sjcXxBP91k
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) December 15, 2020
Paul: Swalwell ‘Really Should Be Red-faced And Ashamed Of Himself’
“He was the most over-the-top critic of President Trump on Russia collusion, and it turns out he’s sleeping with a Chinese spy,” Paul noted.
Paul said Swalwell should be ashamed of himself.
“I mean, my goodness, the hypocrisy!,” Paul continued. “It’s appalling, and he really should be red-faced and ashamed of himself, and really probably ought to just resign from Congress.”
Sen. Paul’s comments come in the wake of 17 Republican House members calling for Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to remove Swalwell from the intelligence committee.
Republican Congressman Jim Banks told The Daily Wire, “Speaker Pelosi spent four years yelling about President Trump being compromised by Russia, despite never having evidence to support her claim.”
“Well, now we have proof our foremost adversary compromised a lawmaker who regularly handles highly classified intelligence,” Banks added.
Banks emphasized, “Speaker Pelosi needs to step up, put country over party and call on Rep. Swalwell to resign from the House Intelligence Committee.”
Nancy Pelosi gave a vote of confidence to Eric Swalwell after revelations of his interactions with a suspected Chinese spy set off a furor among Republicans in Congress.
“I don't have any concern about Mr. Swalwell,” Pelosi told reporters.https://t.co/SHaINfrT8H pic.twitter.com/DS2yVlsFSk
— POLITICO (@politico) December 10, 2020
Pelosi Isn’t Worried About Swalwell
When Pelosi was asked about this controversy by reporters last week, she replied, “I don’t have any concern about Mr. Swalwell.”
“In terms of Mr. Swalwell, in the spring of 2015, the leadership of the House and the [Intelligence] committee were informed that overtures from a Chinese person were being made to members of Congress,” Pelosi said during a news conference. “When that was made known to the members of Congress, it was over, that was the end of any communication with those people.”