U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA) shared two clips of himself speaking in Congress in an attempt to combat the bothsidesism, as he sees it, that has infected the American body politic.
Swalwell called out numerous lawmakers for what he characterized as incendiary social media posts accusing Democrats of conspiring to beat their GOP opponent Donald Trump through violence, and said the same lawmakers have failed to condemn the actions of Trump supporters who raided the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
[in the same mode, Swalwell has on other occasions slammed Republicans including Trump for their reaction to the assault of Rep. Nancy Pelosi‘s husband, a violent crime Trump joked about.]
In his shared videos, Swalwell cast a particularly bright spotlight on a social media post by Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia, who in the aftermath of the attempted assassination of Trump at a campaign rally, wrote: “The Republican District Attorney in Butler County, PA, should immediately file charges against Joseph R. Biden for inciting an assassination.”
Swalwell concludes from such a suggestion that Collins and those making similar statements are not “serious” people.
Swalwell asserts that such accusations are part of a campaign to “erase what happened” at the Capitol on January 6 and to “rewrite” history.
Swalwell: One member said Democrats and the media have called Trump a racist. They compared him to Hitler… In fact, the former President’s VP nominee is the one who said that Donald Trump might be America’s Hitler… pic.twitter.com/h2Pc2NnPN6
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 23, 2024
Swalwell also called out Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) for saying that Democrats “for years relentlessly stoked fears calling President Trump and others threats to democracy.” (Democrats do contend that he is.)
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), in another communication highlighted by Swalwell, posted that the assassination attempt “isn’t some unfortunate incident. This was an assassination attempt by a madman inspired by the rhetoric of the radical left.” Swalwell refutes the claim, citing the unclear motive of the shooter.
Swalwell goes on to point out that some of the harshest criticism of Trump as a threatening autocrat has emanated not from the Democrats but from the Republican side.
He leaves Nikki Haley’s withering Trump criticisms aside but cites the much-publicized flip-flop in the opinions of GOP VP nominee Sen. J.D. Vance, who had in the past characterized Trump as “cultural heroin” and “reprehensible.” (Vance has said he changed his mind.)
The other post Swalwell shared featured a story about his father, a police officer, who the Congressman said made him watch — as a student — the inauguration of Bill Clinton, a disappointing event for his father, a supporter of George H. W. Bush.
His father, Swalwell says, wanted him to witness and honor the peaceful transfer of power, even though it was an election result he didn’t wish for — the subtext being that January 6 was a highly dishonorable example of the opposite behavior.
Watch this from Eric Swalwell pic.twitter.com/F6fpH8QJsZ
— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) July 23, 2024
NOTE: Swalwell’s parents haven’t changed their political stripes, he implies, also sharing his appearance on Fox News where he joked that appearing on Rupert Murdoch’s right-leaning airwaves is the “only time my parents will see me.”
Hi Mom! https://t.co/q2xNhlOawB
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) July 23, 2024