Political Tribune

2024, Opinion

Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell Expertly Trolls Matt Gaetz—And We’re Here For Every Second of It

Eric Swalwell had a hilarious response to his Congressional colleague.

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Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), it’s fair to say, aren’t good buddies.

The two men have taken shots at one another in the media, even if Swalwell once said on Jimmy Kimmel Live that Gaetz will come up to him and say hi in restaurants, while others like Jim Jordan and Ted Cruz will be nice to him on occasion (Swalwell said in the same interview that Marjorie Taylor Greene “wants to kill me” in the event they see each other at restaurants).

In 2022, Gaetz denied a report that Swalwell was “in cahoots” with him when Gaetz and other conservatives were trying to depose House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. And Gaetz, in a 2023 podcast interview, once defended Swalwell when the California Democrat was found to have socialized with a Chinese spy.

But more often, the two have tangled:

Swalwell also once went after Gaetz for bringing a man once accused of murder with him to a Congressional committee meeting.


This week, Gaetz and Swalwell tangled again, after the Florida Congressman posted a note from a “friend” in Georgia who reported that “shooting, looting, price gauging [sic]” and other bad things were taking place in the aftermath of the hurricane.

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Swalwell quote-tweeted Gaetz, referencing the Congressman’s recent scandals.

Since 2021, Gaetz has been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee, which is looking into whether Gaetz “may have engaged in sexual misconduct and/or illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift, in violation of House Rules, laws, or other standards of conduct.”

Gaetz was told in early 2023 that he would not be charged with a crime in conjunction with an earlier Justice Department probe, although the Congressman was recently named in a lawsuit placing him at a “sex party” with teenaged girls present.

Photo courtesy of Political Tribune media library. 

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Stephen Silver

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Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, technology, and the economy.

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