GOP Leader McCarthy says Swalwell should be removed from Intelligence Committee following FBI briefing

On Friday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called for the removal of Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell from the House Intelligence Committee because of his contacts with an alleged Chinese spy.

McCarthy made the statement following a briefing from the FBI for him and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, regarding Swalwell’s relationship with alleged Chinese agent, Christine Fang.

McCarthy tweeted "The House Intelligence Committee is a special committee. The members on it have access to many of America’s top national security secrets. Long story short—There are 200 other Democrats who would be better to be on the Intel Committee than Eric Swalwell."

According to a bombshell Axios story earlier this month, Fang made inroads with Swalwell and several other Democratic politicians while working undercover for the Chinese Communist Party’s Ministry of State Security.

Fang first became active in politics in the Bay Area of California in 2011. Between 2011 and 2015, Fang made contact with many of the Bay Area’s most prominent politicians. She first met Swalwell when he served as a city councilman in Dublin, California.

Fang maintained contact with Swalwell after he was elected to Congress in 2012. Fang even planted an intern in Swalwell’s congressional office and participated in his 2014 reelection campaign. Fang used her position as a well-connected political operative to usher in high-profile representatives and donors to political events. Fang suddenly left the country in 2015 amid the investigation. Meanwhile, Swalwell has continued to refuse to give details about his relationship with the alleged spy.

On Friday, a national security source told One American News Network that Swalwell was briefed by the FBI and affirmed that he slept with the Chinese agent who was reportedly under surveillance by the federal agency. Swalwell was married for the second time in 2016.

The FBI briefed Swalwell in early 2015 about Fang’s activities, shortly after he was appointed to serve on the House Intelligence Committee, at which point his office maintains he had cut off ties with the woman. Swalwell served as the lead Democrat on the subcommittee on CIA oversight. The committee is considered one of the most sensitive committees in Congress and handles highly classified government secrets.

Seventeen House Republicans including Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana (a member of the House Armed Services Committee), Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana (the House minority whip), Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, Rep. Jody Hice of Georgia, and a dozen others, signed a letter to Pelosi on Tuesday calling for Swalwell to be removed from the Intelligence panel.

"We write to you today out of concern with Congressman Eric Swalwell’s reported, close contacts with a Chinese Communist Party spy recently reported by Axios. Because of Rep. Swalwell’s position on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, his close interactions with Chinese intelligence services, however unintentional they may be, are an unacceptable national security risk. HPSCI handles some of the most sensitive information our government possesses, information critical to our national defense. As such, we urge you to immediately remove Rep. Swalwell from his position on the House Intelligence Committee."