Democratic California Rep. Eric Swalwell and Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie engaged in an online quarrel spanning Sunday and Monday.
The exchange kicked off in response to Massie’s Sept. 30 tweet criticizing Democratic New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman.
In case you missed it, this is the same stable individual who pulled the fire alarm today in the Capitol during votes. https://t.co/9IFpxKYH0a
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) Sep 30, 2023
“In case you missed it, this is the same stable individual who pulled the fire alarm today in the Capitol during votes,” he posted, along with a video from March showing Bowman screaming at Massie about gun control in the halls of the Capitol.
Swalwell evidently did not take kindly to that tweet. “This guy [Massie] is lecturing us on stable individuals,” he posted Sunday, attaching a 2021 photo of Massie and his family displaying their guns around a Christmas tree.
This guy is lecturing us on stable individuals. https://t.co/QRuH6CKpTl pic.twitter.com/C9AuUJAUcH
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) October 1, 2023
Massie shot back Monday with a tweet that read, “Fang Fang’s boyfriend insinuates that being in a picture with a gun makes you unstable. Remember this the next time he promotes red flag laws.” (RELATED: ‘National Security Nightmare’: GOP Rep Says Hunter Biden Had An ‘Eric Swalwell Situation’)
Fang Fang’s boyfriend insinuates that being in a picture with a gun makes you unstable.
Remember this the next time he promotes red flag laws.
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) October 2, 2023
Fang Fang, also known as Christine Fang, was a Chinese national suspected of spying for the People’s Republic of China by ingratiating herself with American politicians, Axios reported back in December 2020. One of the politicians that she targeted was Swalwell, the outlet noted. Republicans have often insinuated that this relationship between Fang and Swalwell was sexual in nature.
ICYMI: Rep. Eric Swalwell was one politician a suspected Chinese spy developed extensive ties with in what officials believe was an operation run by China’s main civilian spy agency between 2011 and 2015, Axios found in a yearlong investigation. https://t.co/wQUOW8Jpij
— Axios (@axios) December 8, 2020
Swalwell was kicked off the House Intelligence Committee by Speaker Kevin McCarthy in January over this relationship with the suspected Chinese spy. Swalwell was cleared of wrongdoing by the House Ethics Committee in May.