In Politics, Timing Is Everything — And Swalwell’s Implosion Is Right on Cue
The full court press against Swalwell happened so fast, it was almost as if a memo went out from Democratic Central that ordered all the rats to abandon ship.
Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.” The timing of Rep. Eric Swalwell’s spectacular implosion on Friday is a case in point.
After the explosive allegations broke — first via the San Francisco Chronicle and then CNN — including a former staffer’s sexual assault claim and accusations from three additional women of unwanted sexual advances and explicit messages, the Democratic stampede away from the congressman and previously formidable gubernatorial candidate was on.
The presumption of innocence flew out the window. Politico reported that the co-chairs of Swalwell’s campaign, Reps. Jimmy Gomez and Adam Gray resigned and called for him to withdraw from the race, even before the Chronicle published its report.
Gomez issued a statement that read: “Today I learned shocking information about Eric Swalwell containing the ugliest and most serious accusations imaginable. My involvement in any campaign begins and ends with trust. I cannot in good conscience remain in any role with this campaign, and I am stepping down from it effective immediately.”
Both of California’s Democratic senators, Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, called on Swalwell to end his campaign.
The California Teachers’ Association and the SEIU immediately paused their endorsements. In a statement, CTA President David Goldberg said, “The allegations are incredibly disturbing and unacceptable against Rep. Swalwell. We are immediately suspending our support.”
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called for an investigation and recommended he leave the race. So did House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).
Even Swalwell’s former friend, Sen. Reuben Gallego (D-AZ), who had expressed solidarity with him earlier this week, turned his back on him.
And on it went.
Swalwell forcefully denied the allegations in a late-night video post on X:
Hear it directly from me. These allegations are flat false. And I will fight them. pic.twitter.com/bQSlCquD1U
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) April 11, 2026
Democrats, with the help of a complicit media, have shown they can sideline damaging narratives when it suits them. Recall the 2020 presidential race, when Tara Reade’s credible — and even corroborated — allegations of sexual assault against Joe Biden were discredited and then buried.
The full-court press against Swalwell happened so fast, it was almost as if a memo went out from Democratic Central ordering all the rats to abandon ship.
In fact, some political analysts think that’s precisely what happened, and the concern centers on the possibility that California might actually elect a Republican governor.
As I reported earlier this week:
California will hold a “jungle primary” in the gubernatorial race on June 2, with all candidates — regardless of party — competing on a single ballot. The top two finishers will advance to a November runoff.
The RealClearPolitics polling average currently shows former Fox News host Steve Hilton, a Republican, leading the race with 14.7%. Eric Swalwell follows closely at 13.7%, while another Republican, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, is hot on his heels with 13%.
Rounding out the field are former Rep. Katie Porter (D) at 11.3%, billionaire businessman Tom Steyer (D) at 10.3%, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra at 4.3%, and former California Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa at 4%.
Before Friday’s mutiny, a scenario in which two Republicans finished on top was very much in play. While Swalwell refuses to drop out of the race, his support is expected to collapse.
Democrats are now counting on Swalwell’s former supporters to rally behind either Porter or Steyer to make sure a Democrat is on the ballot in November.
In the X post below, a political analyst notes, “How ruthlessly effective is the Democrat machine? Eric Swalwell is asked to drop out of the race because a Republican may actually win. He refuses.”
“This is all a coordinated attack because they’ve seen the internal polling that [Republican] Steve Hilton may actually win this thing and they are sacrificing Swalwell because liberal idiots like him are a dime a dozen,” he concludes.
How ruthlessly effective is the Democrat machine?
Eric Swalwell is asked to drop out of the race because a Republicans may actually win.
He refuses.
Party operatives tap into their pool of white liberal feminists and just like that, he's hit with not one…not two, but FOUR…
— Pro-America | Politics & Markets (@Pro__Trading) April 11, 2026
One dem just needs enough votes to knock out the 2nd place republican to advance to the general. ALL the dems piling up on Swalwell all at once (when they have always known he is a scumbag) shows they have a plan. It wouldn’t surprise me if they orchestrated this with the media. pic.twitter.com/xveV2KJSJT
— K8 (@JustHereToDrink) April 11, 2026
Conservative political strategist, lobbyist, and Trump loyalist Mike Davis agrees.
He also pointed out that Democrats are not calling for Swalwell’s resignation from Congress.
You know the real reason why Democrats are calling for Eric Swalwell to drop out of the California governor’s race?
They know Republicans could win, with Democrats splitting their votes.
How do we know?
Democrats aren’t calling for Swalwell to resign from his House seat.
— 🇺🇸 Mike Davis 🇺🇸 (@mrddmia) April 11, 2026
Another analyst argued that Porter was aware of the allegations in advance and sat on them “until it was too late for anyone else to enter. She knew Swalwell would be her biggest Dem challenger. The party of ‘Believe All Victims’ has no choice when a Dem Intern says she was sexually assaulted by an office holder.”
I’m not convinced that Porter really has the clout within the Democratic Party to dictate the timing of a scandal. Besides, the filing deadline for candidates to appear on the June 2 primary ballot was March 6, well over a month ago.
Porter sat on this until it was too late for anyone else to enter. She knew Swalwell would be her biggest Dem challenger.
The party of “Believe All Victims” has no choice when a Dem Intern says she was sexually assaulted by an office holder. https://t.co/SLFjV4xr7x
— Shipwreckedcrew (@shipwreckedcrew) April 11, 2026
Either way, Porter is a terrible candidate and an unlikable person. When people think of her, they remember she allegedly threw scolding mashed potatoes at her now ex-husband’s head during an argument, screamed “Get out of my f***ing shot!” to an aide when she was recording a message for the Biden administration, and threatened to walk out in the middle of a CBS interview because she didn’t like the questions.
Additionally, both Schiff and Republican candidate Steve Garvey crushed her in the 2024 Senate primary.
The affable and politically savvy former Fox News host Steve Hilton (R) has been campaigning in this race for more than a year and has gained significant traction.
In the end, the speed and uniformity of the Democratic response tell their own story. Within hours, party leaders, allies, and institutional backers moved in near lockstep, reshaping a volatile race at a moment when the stakes could not be higher. Whether driven by genuine outrage, political necessity, or something more calculated, the timing of Swalwell’s implosion has already altered the trajectory of the contest. In a system where deadlines have passed, and options are limited, the question lingers: was this simply a scandal breaking when it did — or a reminder that in politics, timing is often the most powerful force of all?
SWALWELL IS TOAST! pic.twitter.com/f3CkXYwbWN
— Brick Suit (@Brick_Suit) April 11, 2026
Elizabeth writes commentary for Legal Insurrection and The Washington Examiner. She is an academy fellow at The Heritage Foundation. Please follow Elizabeth on X or LinkedIn.
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Comments
I visualize Rodney Dangerfield looking at the dweeb, Spaulding, and snorting, “Now I know why tigers eat their young.”
BTW, there have been several occasions when I’m sure my wife “threw scolding mashed potatoes.” I love typos that improve the original sentiment.
Gee, Eric, looks like you don’t actually have any REAL “friends.”
Here’s Naomi Wolf’s phone number..
It’s so you can invite her for coffee and get some insight as to what to do when Democrat friends screw you over and cancel you.
It’s NOT so you can send her a dikpik.
Democrats weren’t bothered after news filtered out about Swalwell sleeping with a Chinese intelligence agent and what this Mata Hari gained via pillow talk or a discrete search of his domicile.
The oldest game in the book, and not a peep from these paragons of virtue.
FWIW. On his podcast a few months ago VDH mentioned that he was approached by the very same woman and he sent her packing.
If there’s no contemporaneous police report, it didn’t happen.
Allegations of conduct from years ago suddenly surface this late in the race? Color me skeptical. Swalwell just got the Herman Caine treatment and just like the women and the allegations they will be dropped immediately if he withdraws. Dudes vile but enough of these #metoo hit job allegations from decades ago.
“Within hours, party leaders, allies, and institutional backers moved in near lockstep, reshaping a volatile race at a moment when the stakes could not be higher..”
Data: “Do you control the Borg collective?”
Borg Queen: “You imply disparity where none exists. I am the collective.”
Out of all the high profile Democrats calling for him to exit the race, I have not seen a single one also demand he resign his Congressional seat.
That’s all I need to conclude this was a highly coordinated attack to clear the field for other Democrats. It’s similar to how they forced Biden off the ticket despite him winning the primary.
Democrats hate democracy.
Need a drumbeat to get him to resign from Congress too. If anything it would freshen the air there but only slightly.
Republicans would be screaming for it if they had balls/brains/clean hands….take your pick.
Or, Biden suddenly won SC in 2020 out of the blue. Zip democracy in action there.
Swalwell is being politically memory holed right in front of all of us.
‘Scolding mashed potatoes’ sounds like a very unpleasant conversational partner, much like Katie Hobbs.
Is that anything like “casting asparagus” on someone?
Swalwell’s problem was that he didn’t hide the sausage.
Well, I think that technically, he did.
Waiting until now puts Swalwell on the ropes with not enough time to punch his way back to the center of the ring. That’s why Porter didn’t spring this right after the filing deadline. The party probably also approached Swalwell to see if he would remove himself from the CA race voluntarily, as he could claim he did so “for the benefit of the party” and all the accusations would have been kept under the rug. He was allowed time (since political reality set in and the time the accusations were revealed) to give his reply to the request. If such a request was made, he must have declined it.
I’m not quite sure what is the purpose of leaving him in his seat. Although he will likely remain a sure D vote, his effectiveness otherwise has been shot to hell. If they forced him to resign his seat, surely he’d be replaced by a similarly reliable vote (and likely by someone similarly ineffective, being a newbie to the House). Leaving him in his seat just seems to give away the game without any real upside for the party. Or are they hoping Swalwell can quickly recover from the damage (but only after he withdraws from the CA race) to once again pick up the mantle of a key member of the House?
“I’m not quite sure what is the purpose of leaving him in his seat. Although he will likely remain a sure D vote, his effectiveness otherwise has been shot to hell. If they forced him to resign his seat, surely he’d be replaced by a similarly reliable vote (and likely by someone similarly ineffective, being a newbie to the House).”
Bingo. Newbie wouldn’t have Swalwell’s seniority, even such as it is. Crappier committee positions.
Porter in an unlikeable bitch,
Steyer is a Jew therefore unelectable. He is also a first class born again climate nut. As a hedge fund billionaire probably paying no taxes he made much of his money in coal and coal plants with a heavy chinese angle if I recall correctly. He then saw the light and disavowed hydrocarbons probably so he could make more money off the green grift. Despicable waste of oxygen,
Steyer is not a Jew (though his father was, which may be enough for the antisemites to oppose him).
That’s good to know. There are enough Jewish nutjobs. the less that can be associated with us the better.
Does the name Ralph Northam ring a bell? He was accused of something embarrassing (though far less serious). Communists and their media bootlickers demanded he resign. He refused and started talking endlessly about abortion. And then – miracle of miracles! – all the resignation pressure vanished without a trace.
Swalwell may try the Northam gambit – and it could work.
“Speaker
EmeritaInebrieta Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) …”FIFY
I’ll say it again.
I told you guys this was going to happen.
They were running propaganda ‘HAHA GUYS TWO REPUBLICANS CAN TOTALLY BE ON THE TICKET HAHA WE SO SCARED OH NO’
They were always going to rugpull the also-rans to rig it against a Republican being on the ticket, like always.
Swallwell was technically ‘in the lead’ but he never polled above 15% max. He was never going to be allowed to win. Just like 2024, when suddenly people started dropping out and endorsing Biden – they guy who hadn’t actually been in the lead at any point.
These accusations against Swallwell have been around for years. They all knew them. They knew how much money he paid them to keep them quiet.
It’s pretty obvious they told him quietly to pull out and Swallwell was stupid enough to think he could say ‘no’.
The pulling of endorsements, the public speeches, the sudden staff resignations. None of it happens organically this fast. It was all part of the predictable play.
And yet, not a SINGLE prominent Democrat is actually calling for his resignation.
Steyer is probably going to be next. They’re never going to let a billionaire be the face of California.
If he was asked and did say “No,” that shows he’s not a team player, unwilling to toe the party line. That’s likely his real offense. Rape and sexual impropriety are just the levers to justify his ouster to the public. We’ve seen how the Dems have treated others who step out (e.g., Fetterman and Sinema). They are treated like lepers.
“ Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called for…”.
“Speaker Emerita” is not a real title!
Yes, it is. It was granted her by the House Steering and Policy Committee.
Correction: It was granted by the House Democratic steering and policy committee, so it’s a real title within the Democrat Party, not of the House itself.
And if there is ever another retired female speaker, they will both be speakers emeritae.
I think Swalwell is a scumbag.
On the other hand, the allegations are unproven, and he denied them. One woman said she blacked out after drinking with him in a bar and woke up in his bed. If he took advantage of her he is blameworthy, but she is also at fault (to a lesser degree) if she got drunk with him. Or could he have drugged her drinks?
I agree with Ms. Stauffer that it seems orchestrated.
Of course it is orchestrated. I’m sure Swalwell banged his interns, but didn’t rape them. Any chick who went to work for him was probably a Monica Lewinsky type and knew exactly what her role would be. But now the Party needs him out of the way, and they dredged up the ole Kavanaugh Playbook.
It would be really funny if this hit job actually makes him go up in the polls. There hasn’t been any recent public polling.
East Bay district votes 70% dem. He can be replaced by different dem.
Probably a woman this time too,
It would be hard to find a more deserving despicable pile of garbage to get the full Democrat dirty-play treatment. Lie down with dogs…. 😂
They did the same thing to Kitzhaber after the election. All of the shenangans were in place well before the election, and were starting to show through the cracks, but the DNC press held off until afterwards to avoid having a republican elected, so the dem Secretary of State could take over, and thus began the accelerated destruction of Oregon.
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