![Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California revealed that the most significant moment of 2018 was the anti-President Donald Trump movement. [Hill TV/screen shot]](https://images.dailycaller.com/image/width=960,height=411,fit=cover,f=auto/https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Screen-Shot-2018-12-24-at-9.17.50-AM-e1545661087924.png "Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California revealed that the most significant moment of 2018 was the anti-President Donald Trump movement. [Hill TV/screen shot]")
Democratic California Rep. Eric Swalwell said Saturday afternoon the contents of the Mueller report will not change his mind about his thoughts on President Donald Trump working as an agent for Russia.
“If that report says that the president was not a Russian agent, congressman, would you say the president is not a Russian agent?” Swalwell was asked by Fox News Channel’s Neil Cavuto.
Swalwell responded, “The president acts on Russia’s behalf. I don’t need to see the Mueller report for that.”
“Then you don’t care what the report says because you’ve drawn your own conclusions,” said Cavuto.
Swalwell objected, saying, “Oh no, I care deeply what the report says.”
Cavuto interjected, “No, you don’t. You don’t care what the Mueller report says because you’ve drawn your own conclusions, right?”
Rep. Eric Swalwell speaks during a news conference regarding the separation of immigrant children. (Alex Edelman/Getty Images)
Swalwell explained, “I care what the report says. I am telling you that there is a difference between what you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt and wrongdoing that we all have seen just because you are off scot-free for a crime doesn’t mean you didn’t do something wrong and I think you would agree with that.”
Cavuto replied, “But we don’t know if that’s the case. You’ve already said it.”
The California Democrat said he did not need to see the Mueller report “to see that the president’s kids met with the Russians in Trump Tower.”
Back in January during an appearance on MSNBC, Swalwell accused President Trump of being an agent of Russia, confirming affirmatively to host Chris Matthews when he asked if he thought that Trump was “an agent like in the 1940’s where you had people who were reds to use the term? Like that. In other words, people who were working for a foreign power?”
“He’s working on behalf of the Russians—yeah,” Swalwell said.
Last Tuesday night when Swalwell appeared on the Fox News Channel with Martha MacCallum and was asked about the comment, he claimed he meant “agency” and not as an “agent” of Russia. (RELATED: Maccallum Grills Swalwell For Standing By Debunked Dossier)
Former U.S. attorney and Fox New contributor Andrew McCarthy noticed the discrepancy and wrote in a Fox News column, “Maintaining his smarm while trying to deflect MacCallum’s question, Swalwell played a couple of cutesy-pie lawyer games. First, he attempted to redefine ‘agent.’ The sense manifestly conveyed by his original defamatory claim was ‘agent’ as an espionage term-of-art, referring to a clandestine operative.”
“Now, however, we are to understand the congressman meant it almost benignly: agency as in ‘just acting on someone’s behalf’ – maybe coincidentally, perhaps not attuned to the elevation of Russia’s interests over America’s,” McCarthy added.
Swalwell also defended the unverified Steele dossier, which was used to get a FISA warrant to spy on former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page in 2016, asking MacCallum which part of it was not factual. (RELATED: Swalwell Refuses To Say If He Believes Most Salacious Trump Dossier Claim)
Kerry Picket is a host on SiriusXM Patriot 125