Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs tap danced around questions concerning fellow Democratic Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego’s response — which many found lacking — to misconduct allegations against former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA). Gallego, who in the past has been described as Swalwell’s “best friend,” denied having any prior knowledge concerning the sexually deviant acts Swalwell has been accused of, despite their lengthy friendship.
During a recent interview with NBC 12 News located in the city of Phoenix, reporter Brahm Resnik pressed Hobbs several times on whether she believed Gallego’s explanation for why he allegedly knew nothing about his best pal’s “predatory behavior.” Resnik asked the governor, “Do you accept Senator Gallego’s explanation for why he didn’t know about Swalwell’s alleged predatory behavior?”
“Well, those are really questions for the senator,” Hobbs went on to respond. “I will say that as a social worker who spent a big part of my career working with victims of domestic violence, I absolutely take any allegations of sexual assault seriously and believe that any perpetrator, no matter who they are, needs to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
According to a report published by The Daily Caller, Hobbs kept trying to do her best Gene Kelly impression and maneuver around the question, arguing that it’s a matter for voters to decide. “I don’t think it’s on me to accept. It’s on the voters and, again, these questions need to go back to the senator,” Hobbs answered. “So you’re not going to answer that question,” Resnik pressed.
“I support survivors and I am glad there’s going to be some accountability,” Hobbs told Resnik. Swalwell stepped down from his position in Congress and suspended his gubernatorial campaign after allegations of sexual assault were lodged against him by at least five women as of this writing. A former staffer who worked for the embattled California Democrat recounted her horrific experience to CNN.
In April 2024, the woman said she woke up to find Swalwell on top of her in his hotel bed after a night of heavy drinking. Another woman, Democratic social media influencer Ally Sammarco, said that Swalwell sent her unsolicited photographs of his genitalia. Recently, a reporter asked Gallego how he managed to remain completely unaware of Swalwell’s behavior given that he was the chairman for his 2020 presidential campaign.
“This man led a double life. He lied to us, he lied to his family, he lied to his constituents,” Gallego told the reporter. “It’s the most powerful people in this country, you know, even before he ran, he was trusted with some positions that normally we would never think someone like this could do if they’re leading that double life. And again, I was manipulated, I was lied to, and everyone else was too.”
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The Arizona senator then said he would release all of the text messages he exchanged with Swalwell and other materials if he were subpoenaed. Folks in the comment section of the Daily Caller had a lot of thoughts about Hobbs, with one in particular summing up it best by writing, “The Governor of Arizona is one of the most corrupt politicians in the history of the country.”
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