Two congressional creeps bring bipartisanship back to D.C.
by Elwood Watson
The recent resignations of Reps. Eric Swalwell of California and Tony Gonzales of Texas in the wake of sordid sexual-misconduct allegations have titillated the political establishment.
Swalwell’s political career and California gubernatorial campaign began to implode after the San Francisco Chronicle reported on the account of a former staffer, who said he had sexually assaulted her. Others have since come forward.
Gonzales, a Texas Republican and former Navy veteran, reluctantly admitted to engaging in an extramarital affair with a staffer named Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, who later died by suicide.
In both cases, it was the right decision to step down. There is no way either man could have effectively represented their constituents, let alone seek higher office, while entangled in such dark and sordid drama. While both Republican and Democrat men can be considered morally deficient, Swalwell, who unabashedly embraced the #MeTwo movement for much of his political career, comes across as the epitome of hypocrisy.
House Democrats quickly dropped their support for Swalwell, who had long been a favorite of progressives due to his fierce party policies and intense hostility toward President Trump. But most Republicans stopped short of calling for Gonzales’ resignation or expulsion until the Swalwell allegations catapulted the issue of sexual misconduct to the forefront of debate.
It took diligent and sustained pressure from female Republican House members — including Anna Paulina Luna, Lauren Bobert, and Nancy Mace — to kept the heat on Gonzales, and on their conference’s leaders, until the congressman, who originally denied the affair, felt compelled to admit it and end his re-election campaign.
In the end, Republicans and Democrats were provided the opportunity to expel one member from each party without upsetting the partisan makeup of a narrowly divided House.
Talk about bipartisan cooperation!
The atrocious behavior of Swalwell and Gonzales certainly does not personify the majority of male lawmakers as monsters or sexual predators. But far too often, when revelations of sinister and derelict behavior are inflicted upon subordinates, it often draws a less-than-dramatic response among congressional politicians. Instead, the routine response is confirmation of hearing rumors and whispers and discussions about which politician is likely to be the next to have their career implode from such news.
Over the past decade, Democrats have typically taken a firm stance on monitoring members of their own ranks for sexual-misconduct allegations. Remember the eventual party groundswell resulting in the ouster of former Sen. Al Franken in 2018 after accusations of misconduct surfaced among multiple women?
When the Swalwell allegations hit the public late last week, Democratic allies wasted no time in calling their colleague out and engineering the drumbeat culminating in his eventual departure. Democrats, while far from perfect by any means, do make a diligent effort to implement a code of morality among their members.
On the contrary, for the most part, MAGA Republicans are so deeply wedded to parochialism they will defend, excuse, or ignore any and all morally reductive behavior committed by their debased party leader.
It appears for the MAGA conservative right the ability to wield, consolidate, and maintain power is the ultimate goal. Sad to say, given the outcome of the most recent presidential elections, they are largely correct. Hopefully, this will change.
Copyright 2026 Elwood Watson, distributed by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. Elwood Watson is a professor of history, Black studies, and gender and sexuality studies at East Tennessee State University. He is also an author and public speaker.
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