Sen. Josh Hawley on Friday said he "can't imagine" why Rep. Eric Swalwell remains on the House Intelligence Committee and there aren't further details about his relationship with alleged Chinese spy Christine Fang.
"We know the spy raised money for him for heaven's sake," the Missouri Republican said on Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "You want to talk about an election integrity issue: Chinese spies raising money for Democrat politicians, bundling money, and putting people in his office. It is extraordinary and again I can't believe he is still on the Intelligence Committee over at the House."
The FBI was to brief House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other lawmakers Friday afternoon on the Swalwell matter, and Hawley said there is no doubt the California Democrat should be removed from his committee post.
"We've got to figure out what in the world went on there in terms of this spy," said Hawley. "What money did she raise for him? Was it legal, foreign money? What influence did she have in the office? She got people placed in his Capitol Hill office. Were they also connected to the Chinese government?"
He also pointed out that Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., had a Chinese spy on her staff for years.
"What is going on with [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi's California Democratic Party?" said Hawley. "I think we need to get some answers."
The scandal also points to the fact that the United States' relationship with China must be "totally re-examined," Hawley said. "[This] espionage has got to be cut off at the knees. Shut down things like TikTok and get us of the trade deals with China. China has been able to do whatever they want to do. The espionage is the latest."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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