Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy confirmed Monday night that Democratic California Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell will be removed from the House Intelligence Committee and the House will vote on the removal of Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee.
In February, McCarthy told the Daily Caller that if he is elected Speaker that he intends to strip Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee and Swalwell and Schiff from the Intelligence Committee. On Monday, McCarthy confirmed to The Associated Press (AP) that he would be moving forward with that decision, saying both Swalwell and Schiff should not have seats on the committee.
McCarthy has said Swalwell’s reported relationship with a Chinese spy and Schiff’s defense of the Steele dossier are some of the reasons they should be removed from the committee. McCarthy has said Omar’s anti-Semitism is a reason she should be removed from Foreign Affairs.
“Swalwell can’t get a security clearance in the private sector. I’m not going to give him a government security clearance. Schiff has lied to the American public…,” McCarthy told The AP. (RELATED: Gingrich Defends McCarthy’s Threat To Remove Dems From Committees, Says Pelosi ‘Set The Precedent’)
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) attends a press conference held to celebrate U.S. President Joe Biden cancelling student debt on Capitol Hill on September 29, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for We, The 45 Million)
In 2021, Democrats stripped Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of her committee assignments. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Kevin McCarthy Plots An Investigation Avalanche If GOP Retakes House)
The Daily Caller contacted Swalwell, Schiff, and Omar’s offices about McCarthy’s decision to move forward and have them removed from committee assignments to which they did not immediately respond.