\u201cNo concern.\u201d \u201cPernicious nonsense.\u201d \u201cSpurious allegations.\u201d A \u201cfrivolous, political exercise.\u201d
\nThose were among the defenses senior Democrats mounted on former Rep. Eric Swalwell\u2019s behalf as former GOP House Speaker Kevin McCarthy tried to force the California Democrat off the powerful House Intelligence Committee over his relationship with suspected Chinese intelligence operative Christine \u201cFang Fang\u201d Fang.\u00a0
\nNow, newly declassified FBI records and a raid on his home are casting fresh light on Swalwell\u2019s relationship with Fang that Democrats denied and previously argued did not justify McCarthy\u2019s actions.
\nThe newly declassified records, released\u00a0by the White House Government Transparency Task Force Monday, detail two FBI interviews with Swalwell, both conducted as part of a\u00a0broader investigation\u00a0examining Fang\u2019s involvement with illicit campaign contributions, funneling interns to Swalwell\u2019s office and other activity.\u00a0
\nDECLASSIFIED FBI DOCS REVEAL SWALWELL HAD SEX WITH \u2018FANG FANG\u2019 MULTIPLE TIMES<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, FBI agents seized Swalwell\u2019s electronic devices at San Francisco International Airport on Saturday night, while his Washington, D.C., residence was subsequently searched the following day, as part of a probe into sexual misconduct.
\n\u201cI sat in on that briefing. And when Kevin McCarthy misrepresents it and does that disservice to the American people, it\u2019s shameful,\u201d then-Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said in January 2023 as McCarthy blocked Swalwell from returning to the Intelligence Committee. Schiff, who had chaired the House Intelligence Committee, added that Swalwell had \u201cserved honorably\u201d on the panel, had \u201cnever been accused of any kind of wrongdoing\u201d and called McCarthy\u2019s criticism a \u201cpatently unfair smear.\u201d
\n\u201cMr. Speaker, I have rarely heard such pernicious nonsense as we heard from the minority leader a few minutes ago. He accused Mr. Swalwell of having a Chinese spy or Chinese agent in his campaign. I understand he has introduced a resolution to remove Mr. Swalwell from his committee for that purpose,\u201d Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said during remarks from the House floor. \u201cThat is absurd. And I think Mr. McCarthy ought to be ashamed because he is an experienced campaigner \u2014 he knows this \u2014 for raising these spurious allegations.\u201d
\nSWALWELL RESIGNATION COLLIDES WITH CHINA-LINKED SCANDAL AS CRITICS DEMAND FILE RELEASE<\/p>\n
The newly declassified files show for the first time publicly that the FBI\u2019s concerns about Swalwell went beyond just the fact he had a romantic relationship with Fang, which Swalwell admitted to in the interviews uncovered in the file. The declassified documents also showed agents had launched a full investigation tied to Fang examining possible bribery, foreign campaign contributions and efforts to trade access to Swalwell and congressional internships for political donations.
\nThe records also show how the FBI viewed Fang as a significant counterintelligence concern, suspecting ties to China\u2019s Ministry of State Security (MSS) and at one point attempting to recruit her as an FBI confidential source.
\nPELOSI, CALIFORNIA DEMS SLAM SWALWELL OVER BOMBSHELL SEXUAL ASSAULT ALLEGATIONS: \u2018INDEFENSIBLE\u2019
\nInvestigators ultimately did not find evidence that Swalwell participated in a quid-pro-quo scheme or committed federal corruption violations, and he was removed as a subject of the investigation in 2017. Separately, the bipartisan House Ethics Committee closed its investigation into Swalwell\u2019s interactions with Fang in May 2023 without taking further action against him.
\nThen-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also publicly defended Swalwell as the controversy first erupted in December 2020, saying, \u201cI don\u2019t have any concern about Mr. Swalwell\u201d when asked about whether increased security should be tied to positions of influence in Congress. Her office separately said Pelosi had \u201cfull confidence in Congressman Swalwell\u2019s service in the Congress and on the Intelligence Committee.\u201d
\nPELOSI DISTANCES HERSELF FROM ALLY SWALWELL AMID SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS
\nPelosi and McCarthy later received a classified FBI briefing on the matter in December 2020. McCarthy emerged from the briefing saying Swalwell \u201cshould not be on Intel,\u201d while Pelosi continued to back the California Democrat, who was later reappointed to the Intelligence Committee in March 2021.
\n\u201cThe knowledge that I have of what transpired and the actions that he has done and the behavior, especially when he\u2019s gone to other countries, I would be very leery of him in any position of that can have sensitive information,\u201d McCarthy previously told Fox News Digital earlier this year. \u201cThe recklessness in which he lived his life, the reports that have come back, I think it would be hard for him to ever even be considered as a governor candidate, period.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then-House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer likewise dismissed McCarthy\u2019s effort to remove Swalwell as a \u201cfrivolous, political exercise\u201d intended to \u201cattack the reputation of an outstanding Member of Congress.\u201d Hoyer also described the Republican push as a \u201cspurious attempt.\u201d
\nSENATOR GALLEGO SAYS LONGTIME FRIENDSHIP WITH SWALWELL \u2018CLOUDED MY JUDGMENT\u2019 AS RUMORS SWIRLED IN DC
\nAnd in January 2023, then-Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., went further in defending Swalwell, saying on CNN that \u201cthe FBI has clearly stated that Swalwell \u2026 has been cleared.\u201d Gallego said Swalwell and Schiff \u201chave not done anything incorrectly\u201d and rejected the suggestion that they posed a national-security threat.
\nFox News Digital reached out to the top Democrats mentioned in this article, but did not hear back in time for publication.<\/p>\n
This post appeared first on https:\/\/www.foxnews.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"