Florida Man Charged with Threatening to Kill Rep. Eric Swalwell
The Facts
- A 72-year-old Florida man, Michael Shapiro, has been arrested for threatening to kill Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and his children, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
- It’s alleged that Shapiro, who has been released on bail and has an arraignment scheduled for Jan. 24, left five threatening voicemails at Swalwell’s congressional office in Washington, DC, on Dec. 19.
- In addition to death threats, Shapiro called the lawmaker “Fang Fang,” a reference to a suspected Chinese spy who raised funds for Swalwell’s congressional campaign in 2012 before leaving the US in 2015.
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The Spin
Democratic narrative
Swalwell and his family are the latest victims of extremist MAGA Republicans who continue to resort to threats of political violence while hurling racist, homophobic, and xenophobic epithets. Of course, the GOP will ignore these threats and deflect them, but they can’t hide from the fact that these are consequences of their hateful rhetoric.
Republican narrative
While Swalwell may not be the best representative, there’s no excuse for the disgusting threats made against him. The voicemails from Michael Shapiro, who has a history of unhinged behavior, deserve total condemnation. Politicians should be criticized for their destructive policies and actions, but they should never be subjected to violent threats.
Metaculus Prediction
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