Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy met in a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) on Friday to discuss East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell’s exposure to a Chinese spy and his status on the House Intelligence Committee.
Earlier this week, McCarthy called for Swalwell to be removed from the committee, amid reports that he had personal relationship with a suspected Chinese spy named Fang Fang.
“This man should not be in the intel committee. He’s jeopardizing national security,” McCarthy said on Tuesday.
McCarthy reiterated those remarks on Friday after meeting with Pelosi. “I won’t talk about what goes on inside there, but it only raised more questions,” McCarthy told reporters. “One thing that was fundamentally answered is that he should not be on Intel.”
“The Intel Committee is a special committee. It’s a committee that keeps our secrets. It’s a committee that is able to know our secrets. It’s a committee that has a lot of information that members of Congress do not. I just think that definitely there are 200 other Democrats that I know could fill that place long before this individual,” McCarthy added.
Pelosi said House leaders knew about Swalwell’s interactions with Fang in 2015. A report earlier this month detailed a long-running attempt by Fang, believed to be a spy, to ingratiate herself with Swalwell and many local elected officials in Southern Alameda County and the Tri-Valley.
Fang was able to eventually place an intern in Swalwell’s congressional office, while also serving as a fundraising bundler for his 2014 re-election campaign. Several other reports alleged Swalwell had a romantic relationship with Fang. She later left the country sometime in 2015.
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