McCarthy Ejects Schiff, Swalwell From Intelligence Committee

    Photo: Sipa USA [via New York Post]

    The Facts

    • Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Tuesday officially expelled Reps. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) from the House Intelligence Committee. McCarthy claimed that national security and integrity must prevail over partisan loyalty and years of service.

    • This comes after House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) on Monday formally recommended for Schiff and Swalwell to continue serving on the House Intelligence Committee, despite newly-voted Speaker McCarthy having previously vowed to block the pair.


    The Spin

    Democratic narrative

    The attempts to deny spots on key panels to Democrats were partly in retaliation to the justified removal of Majorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar from other committee assignments. No legitimate wrongdoing has been found to have been committed by either Schiff or Swalwell, and there is no reason outside of partisan politics for their potential rejection by McCarthy.

    Republican narrative

    Schiff perpetuated the improper Trump-Russia collusion theory, while Swalwell has ties to Chinese espionage. Though Jeffries has stated any rejection would go against House precedent, it was former Speaker Nancy Pelosi who first rejected McCarthy's recommendations in 2021. McCarthy and the Republican Party are well within their rights to act according to their conscience.

    Nerd narrative

    There is a 71% chance that Republicans will win control of the US House of Representatives in 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.


    Political split

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