The Western Journal

Schiff Endorses Fellow Russiagate Hoaxer Swalwell for CA Gov, Gets Roasted on Social Media

Conservative News DailyFebruary 10, 2026
24

The piece discusses California’s governor’s race and a controversial endorsement: Senator Adam Schiff endorsing Representative Eric Swalwell to succeed term-limited Governor Gavin Newsom. Schiff argues Swalwell would vigorously defend values, rights, and freedoms, citing their previous work together investigating Donald Trump and Swalwell’s role in impeaching Trump after January 6.The endorsement is framed as a strategic move to unite Democrats behind Swalwell to avoid a jungle primary in which a split Democratic vote could let top Republicans advance.

The article also lays out several cautions and criticisms. It notes that Swalwell and Schiff were removed from the House Intelligence Committee in 2023 amid disputes over the Russia collusion narrative and alleges,via a declassified FBI document and other reporting,that they may have leaked classified facts. It references Swalwell’s ties to a Chinese spy reported by Axios in 2020 and discusses ongoing questions about both men’s residency in California versus the District of Columbia. The piece cites polls and social-media commentary suggesting Swalwell could be ahead of democrat Katie Porter in some scenarios, but it also quotes critics who portray Swalwell as unserious and point to Porter’s local residency as a strength.

the author suggests it’s unclear whether Schiff’s endorsement will move the needle. While consolidating around Swalwell could help Democrats,the piece highlights the potential downsides of backing a candidate with notable controversy,arguing Porter has legitimate local ties and that California voters face more consequential governance issues beyond intra-Democratic politics.

When California Sen. Adam Schiff says he has “exciting news,” you can bet it’s anything but. And if you’re taking this seriously, it’s not. But why take the race for governor on the Democratic side in the Golden State seriously when there’s so much fun to be had?

In this case, the fun involves Schiff endorsing his fellow Russiagate hoaxer, Rep. Eric Swalwell, to succeed the term-limited — and aspiring presidential candidate — Gov. Gavin Newsom.

In a statement released Monday, Schiff said Swalwell “will take on anyone, including the president, to protect our values, our rights, and our freedoms.”

“I worked closely with Eric when we needed to investigate Donald Trump in his first term and hold him accountable,” Schiff said in the short video.

“And I’ve seen Eric in action when he helped lead the impeachment trial of Donald Trump after the president incited the violent mob on January 6,” he continued. “What I saw then and what I know now, Eric is fully prepared to get things done for the Golden State.”

“The Golden State will be in good hands with Eric Swalwell, and I hope you’ll join me in supporting his campaign,” he concluded.

This could mean one of two things.

The first is that Democrats are coalescing around Swalwell to avoid a splintered jungle primary that could mean, in a nightmare situation for Democrats, that the only two logical Republicans in the field advance to the general election because the Democratic vote is split between a field that includes former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, billionaire activist Tom Steyer, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and others.

The Washington Examiner reported that a poll released Monday showed Swalwell moving ahead of Porter for the first time. The progressive lawmaker was considered to be the favorite on the Democratic side until a cascade of what NFL draft scouts like to euphemistically call “character red flags” started piling up:

Thus, even though the primary isn’t until June, consolidating behind someone not named Katie Porter ASAP might not be the worst idea for Democrats, even at the risk of getting a pot of boiling potatoes dumped in your lap.

However, Swalwell has character red flags of his own — and the second reason Schiff might get behind him is that some of them are his red flags, as well.

For instance, Swalwell and Schiff were two of the three Democratic members who were stripped of their roles on the House Intelligence Committee by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023 after the Republicans retook the House. The third was Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who has a history of anti-Semitism.

Part of the reason both California men were taken off the committee was that they had used the Intelligence Committee as a platform to spread lies about “collusion” between President Donald Trump and Russia during the 2016 election. (We’ll get to the other reason Swalwell was kicked off in a second.)

In a document declassified last summer by the FBI, a former congressional staffer alleged that Schiff and Swalwell had leaked classified documents in an effort to discredit Trump, under the assumption that the Speech and Debate Clause of the Constitution would protect them. This caught public attention, as well it should have:

Then there’s the other issue why Swalwell was taken off of the Intelligence Committee: In 2020, Axios reported he was at least an acquaintance with a Chinese spy who had “developed extensive ties with local and national politicians, including” Swalwell, and that those ties included “romantic or sexual relationships.”

In the roughly five-and-a-half years since that report came out, Swalwell has done nothing to answer whether or not he had a relationship with that spy, known as Christine Fang or Fang Fang.

Denizens of X again noted this:

And both men have also faced scrutiny over whether their primary residence is in California and not in or near the District of Columbia:

As the kids liked to say 15 years ago or so, this is a case of real recognizing real.

It’s unclear, however, whether that’s going to move the needle for California Democrats.

Yes, Porter has her own set of problems, and she’s arguably too liberal for even California, but she can also say she actually lives in the state and has never rutted with a Chinese spy. (I can’t believe these are actual standards for California Democrats in 2026, but the Golden State has taken a turn.)

Moreover, being governor actually requires serious effort on serious matters. I wish I could say the same thing about Congress, but Swalwell is an unserious man who has been able to hide his deficiencies behind the fact that he’s one of 214 Democrats in the lower chamber and play up his shamelessness on social or legacy media.

(This is a man who announced his gubernatorial run on Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night program, a venue and host that could have only been more apt if Kimmel broke down in tears.)

So, perhaps this moves the needle. Or, perhaps it makes the argument that Schiff isn’t really in a position to tell California how to run itself. It’s not a good look when one Russiagate hoaxer who fell upwards politically is endorsing another to do the same thing, after all.

And this time it involves the serious business of fixing the nation’s most populous — and broken — state.




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Conservative News DailyFebruary 10, 2026
24
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