House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) will remove several prominent Democrats from their desired committees as Republicans take control of the House.
House Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Eric Swalwell (D-CA) will be booted from their respective committees — Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee, Schiff and Swalwell from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Moreover, American Greatness reports that during a Democrat press briefing, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) reiterated that although McCarthy intends to remove the members, their names will still be nominated for the committees. “They will be put forward”, Aguilar said.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) stated the GOP is focused on “revenge” and “irrelevant investigations” rather than working with Democrats. Lieu stated, “Looks like Kevin McCarthy conceded all the power of his office to the crazies to finally get their votes”. He proceeded to call McCarthy, “speaker in name only.”
In a Fox News interview, McCarthy hinted he would remove the House Democrats from their committees. He conveyed, “Eric Swalwell cannot get a security clearance in the public sector. You have Adam Schiff, who had lied to the American People.”
In 2020, Swalwell was accused of having an affair with a Chinese spy. Consequently, Republicans have complained about his position on the Intelligence Committee. U.S. Intel Officials said that Swalwell’s relationship with the spy was part of an “intelligence operation.”
Additionally, GOP Reps have called for Rep. Omar’s removal from the Foreign Affairs Committee due to her alleged antisemitism. American Greatness reported that House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) stated, “She ought to be removed immediately from the Foreign Affairs Committee.”
Schiff’s removal from the committee should effectively abate his political ability to target Republican members, altogether. As a result, he is reportedly considering a run for the senate to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA).
McCarthy’s move to remove the House Democratic members was seen as “retaliation” considering two House Republicans, Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), were removed from their committees in the 117th congress.
Speaker-designate Kevin McCarthy set to remove Democrats Schiff, Omar, and Swalwell from House committees.https://t.co/fVFEyN0KkM
— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) November 23, 2022
