Efforts to expel Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, from Congress gained bipartisan steam on Sunday, as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle said they would vote in favor of two separate measures to remove the congressmen following separate sexual misconduct allegations against each of them.
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Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker that he would vote in favor of expelling the two lawmakers from Congress, if given the opportunity, two days after multiple women accused Swalwell of sexual harassment and assault.
If separate motions to expel the two congressmen come before the House, Donalds said, “I will be voting yes on both measures.”
“These allegations are despicable and they demean the integrity of Congress. These things are just completely unacceptable,” he added. “As far as I’m concerned, both gentlemen need to go home.”
Appearing later on “Meet the Press,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., was asked whether she’d vote to expel Swalwell if the measure comes to the floor.
“And Congressman Gonzales, I would, I’ve already said that,” the congresswoman said.
“I think that this is very important that we believe women and that we show people across the Capitol and across the country that we will not accept this kind of behavior,” she added.
On Friday, the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported allegations from at least four women, including a former staffer, against Swalwell. One of the women alleged that Swalwell twice sexually assaulted her when she was too intoxicated to consent. Two other women alleged that the California congressman sent them unsolicited photos or videos of his penis. And one woman said that Swalwell kissed her without her consent in public.
One of the women in CNN’s report, Ally Sammarco, confirmed her account of her experience with Swalwell to NBC News, but NBC News has not independently corroborated the other women’s allegations.
Before Friday’s allegations, the California congressman was a leading candidate for governor and is now facing calls from colleagues and political groups to drop out of that race.
In a video posted to X on Friday, Swalwell denied the allegations, telling viewers: “These allegations of sexual assault are flat false. They’re absolutely false. They did not happen. They have never happened, and I will fight them with everything that I have.”
On Sunday, NBC News obtained a cease-and-desist letter sent by Swalwell’s attorney to the woman whose allegations were reported by CNN and the San Francisco Chronicle.
“It has come to our attention that you have made false statements accusing Mr. Swalwell of sexual assault and nonconsensual sexual encounters. We write to demand that you immediately and permanently cease and desist from continuing your wrongful conduct, including by stopping any further publication of such false information or allowing it to be disseminated in any form, whether oral, written, electronic, or otherwise,” the letter said.
It added, “Mr. Swalwell takes these accusations seriously, both because they are false and because they are being injected into California’s gubernatorial race only 24 days before voters go to the polls.”
Earlier this year, Gonzales, who was running for re-election to the House in Texas, dropped out of the race after reports that he exchanged sexually explicit text messages with a staffer who later died by suicide.
On a podcast in March, Gonzales acknowledged that he’d had an affair with the staffer, saying, “I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment. And there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions. He added that he’d “reconciled” with his wife.
Later, a second former staffer told NBC News that the Texas congressman exchanged sexually explicit texts with her while she worked for him.
In her “Meet the Press” interview Sunday, Jayapal said that expelling Gonzales and Swalwell would send an important message.
“This is also important for staffers across the Capitol to see that their bosses don’t get to do this to them,” the congresswoman said.
In a statement Saturday, Swalwell’s senior campaign and congressional staffers said they were “horrified” by the allegations and “stand with our former colleague, and the other women who have come forward.”
Some vowed to remain in their roles because “[we] understand that we have obligations to the people we lead and to the constituents of California’s 14th Congressional District. Those of us that remain on staff do so for the sole purpose of ensuring that as many of those obligations are fulfilled as possible.”
On Saturday, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said in a post on X that she plans to introduce a resolution to expel Swalwell from Congress. That resolution would need two-thirds of the chamber to vote in favor for it to pass.
Also Saturday, two California Democrats, Reps. Sam Liccardo and Jared Huffman, called for Swalwell to resign.
“I’ve seen enough. With his nuanced statement aimed at defending likely criminal charges, Swalwell all but admits a per se abuse of power under House ethics rules: sex with a subordinate. He must now drop out of the Governor’s race and resign from Congress. Rep. Tony Gonzales, who admitted to the same violation, should also resign. If they don’t, I will support voting to expel both of them,” Huffman said in a post on X.
“Swalwell must halt his campaign, resign from office, and face the consequences of a full investigation. Democrats must not equivocate in the face of uncomfortable allegations about one of our own,” Liccardo wrote on X.
Also on Saturday, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said it would investigate the allegations against Swalwell. At least one of the alleged encounters took place in New York.
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