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The Whisper Network That Caught Up to Eric Swalwell

April 13, 2026 at 6:47 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “The broad contours of Swalwell’s alleged behavior, if not the specifics, did not come as a surprise to many working in and around politics, especially in Washington. The 45-year-old cable news darling and Trump antagonist had developed a reputation for unsavory and sometimes unwanted behavior toward women. Those warnings were shared in whisper networks but rarely traveled outside the circle of political insiders.”

“That is, until Swalwell sought a promotion to lead the nation’s most populous state and a pair of content creators worked to spill that open secret into public view. His breakneck undoing is a testament to the striking power of a new media ecosystem in which influencers with huge audiences can not only publicize politicians, but control the political conversation.”

Eric Swalwell Will Resign from Congress

April 13, 2026 at 5:35 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) announced on Monday he plans to resign from Congress.

Said Swalwell: “I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious, false allegation made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.”

Swalwell was facing a potential expulsion vote as soon as this week over sexual misconduct allegations. 

Witnessing Russia’s Spiral into Madness Under Putin

April 13, 2026 at 4:44 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Out next month: The Descent: Witnessing Russia’s Spiral into Madness Under Putin by Marc Bennetts.

The Economist: “To understand how Vladimir Putin dominates Russia so utterly, you must study how his propaganda works. Not everyone believes it all the time. But because it is ubiquitous and unrelenting, it can cripple people’s capacity for rational thought.”

The Descent: Witnessing Russia's Spiral into Madness Under Putin
The Descent: Witnessing Russia's Spiral into Madness Under Putin
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Trump’s Blockade of Hormuz is a Dangerous Gamble

April 13, 2026 at 4:40 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The Economist: “When America and Israel began their war on February 28th, it was widely expected that Iran would choke off shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Few would have predicted that, less than two months later, Donald Trump would impose a blockade of his own, targeting traffic to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas. It went into effect on April 13th.”

“Mr. Trump hopes economic strangulation might force Iran to open the strait where bombardment has failed. It is a dangerous gamble that could compound the global energy crisis and lead to fresh escalation.”

Fed Chair Nominee Clears a Hurdle to Senate Hearing

April 13, 2026 at 4:21 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

CNBC: “Federal Reserve chair nominee Kevin Warsh has submitted required paperwork to the Senate.”

Exchange of the Day

April 13, 2026 at 3:32 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

President Trump spoke to reporters outside of the Oval Office:

REPORTER: Is your expectation other countries will assist this effort to blockade Iran?

TRUMP: Yeah. Other countries are gonna also.

REPORTER: Which countries, sir?

TRUMP: We don’t need other countries.

The House Could Expel Four Lawmakers

April 13, 2026 at 3:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Wall Street Journal: “Only three members of the House have been expelled since the Civil War. This week, there are calls to expel as many as four more.”

“House leaders are facing loud demands to hold votes to kick out Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Tony Gonzales (R-TX) after the chamber returns Tuesday from its two-week Easter recess. Lawmakers argue that the allegations of sexual-misconduct facing both men disqualify them from office and that forcing them to leave sends a strong message that such behavior has gone on too long and won’t be tolerated further on Capitol Hill.”

“Some members are also calling for the expulsion of two other embattled lawmakers, Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and Republican Rep. Cory Mills, both of Florida, who have been under scrutiny from House investigators for months.”

Orban Calls Party Congress After Election Defeat

April 13, 2026 at 3:23 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Bloomberg: “Outgoing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban took to social media to call a congress of his Fidesz party for the end of this month.”

“The message, posted as a video on his Facebook page, was his first communication since conceding to his challenger Peter Magyar on Sunday night. He said he wanted to summon supporters to start work on renewing the party.”

Americans Hate the 2026 Economy

April 13, 2026 at 2:25 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Axios: “The economy has been steadily growing for the last five years, and inflation is way down from its peak nearly four years ago. Public opinion about the economy, by contrast, keeps plumbing new depths.”

“Americans are decisively negative about the economic picture, despite conventional measures of economic performance remaining reasonably solid.”

“It suggests both a new political state of nature and an undercurrent of gloom that traditional economic data and analysis don’t quite capture.”

The Problem With Being Trump’s Heir

April 13, 2026 at 2:16 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

It’s not entirely clear what President Trump thought he was doing by dispatching Vice President JD Vance to campaign alongside Viktor Orbán at a moment when the Hungarian leader was already slipping in the polls.

Nor is it obvious why Vance was put in charge of sensitive negotiations with Iran while Secretary of State Marco Rubio spent the weekend ringside with Trump at a cage fight in Miami.

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Trump Supporters Are Now Asking If He’s the Antichrist

April 13, 2026 at 1:44 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Wired: “In a matter of days, MAGA media figures have gone from defending President Donald Trump as God’s chosen president to making the case that he is actually the antichrist.”

“The accusations reached a fever pitch on Sunday night, after Trump posted an AI-generated image depicting himself dressed in a white robe and red sash and placing a hand radiating golden light on a man in a hospital bed. The image, which Trump deleted from Truth Social after around 14 hours, seemed to invoke Jesus Christ, and outraged some supporters who likened Trump’s behavior to the antichrist—a figure in Christian theology who opposes Christ and whose appearance many believe could augur the end of time.”

House Ethics Begins Probe of Eric Swalwell

April 13, 2026 at 1:39 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The House Ethics Committee has begun an investigation into “sexual misconduct” allegations involving Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA).

A Blow to Global Authoritarianism

April 13, 2026 at 12:35 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Jacob T. Levy: “It’s not just that Orbán losing inspires hope in other competitive-autocratic countries ruled by right-wing nationalist authoritarians. It’s that his loss materially changes things in those other countries, because he’s been operating as a headquarters and funding source for the international ideological movement.”

Timothy Ash: “People may go along with a kleptocracy for as long as an economy is doing well, but ultimately, if the economy starts failing, and they see all these guys lining their pockets, then you can expect a reaction.”

Trump’s Erratic Behavior Revive Mental Health Debate

April 13, 2026 at 12:32 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “President Trump’s erratic behavior and extreme comments in recent days and weeks have turbocharged the crazy-like-a-fox-or-just-plain-crazy debate that has followed him on the national political stage for a decade.”

“A series of disjointed, hard-to-follow and sometimes-profane statements capped by his ‘a whole civilization will die tonight’ threat to wipe Iran off the map last week and his head-spinning attack on the ‘WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy’ pope on Sunday night have left many with the impression of a deranged autocrat mad with power.”

Illiberalism Is Not Inevitable

April 13, 2026 at 11:39 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Anne Applebaum: “Orbán’s loss brings to an end the assumption of inevitability that has pervaded the MAGA movement, as well as the belief—also present in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rhetoric—that illiberal parties are somehow destined not just to win but to hold power forever, because they have the support of the “real” people. As it turns out, history doesn’t work like that. “Real” people grow tired of their rulers. Old ideas become stale. Younger people question orthodoxy. Illiberalism leads to corruption.”

“And if Orbán can lose, then his Russian and American admirers can lose too.”

Trump Removes Post Depicting Himself as Jesus Christ

April 13, 2026 at 11:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

President Trump has deleted his post portraying himself as Jesus after facing some backlash from his own supporters, CNN reports.

Trump Threatens to Blow Up Boats in the Strait of Hormuz

April 13, 2026 at 11:29 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“President Donald Trump threatened to blow up any Iranian ships attempting to violate his newly imposed blockade on Monday morning, with the commander in chief saying any boats that try it will be ‘ELIMINATED’ in the same way his administration attacked suspected drug-running boats from South America,” Mediaite reports.

Swalwell’s Fall Punctuates Woes of Democrats in California

April 13, 2026 at 11:27 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

New York Times: “The California governor’s race was supposed to give Democrats a chance to elevate a new party leader in the nation’s most symbolically significant liberal state, and fill a powerful perch with a progressive voice leading the opposition to President Trump.”

“Instead, the contest to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom has played out more like a series of unfortunate events, culminating with the demise of Representative Eric Swalwell’s campaign in a stew of sexual misconduct accusations.”

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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