Eric Swalwell Humiliated After Latest Stunt Goes Horribly Wrong

A spate of bodybuilding videos hit the internet over the weekend as Democrats continue to grapple with ways to revitalize their prizefighting personas in the eyes of voters.

Unfortunately, the weight was a little light for Congressman Eric Swalwell (D-CA), who was mocked mercilessly after posting a decidedly relaxed clip of himself performing a benchpress. The cringeworthy stunt mirrored those of other would-be 2026 contenders such as Texas U.S. Senate candidate Colin Allred, who curled a dumbbell while excoriating President Donald Trump over his handling of the Epstein files.

“I should be working right now,” Swalwell says to himself in the clip. “I should be at the Capitol. I should be in a suit.”

“Instead, Republicans sent us home because they would rather stand up for Donald Trump than release the Epstein files and stand up for victims.”

The coordinated mania of muscles appeared to be a concerted strategy as other Democrats jumped in with their own workouts. Cait Conley, a U.S. Army veteran challenging GOP Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), pressed weights overhead in a recent clip where she talks about the crisis of affordability in her New York district.

Swalwell, 44, drew some of the worst scorn for appearing to take it easy for the cameras.

“Democrats are trying to attract white male voters. Swalwell at the gym ‘pumping iron’ won’t help,” one user on X wrote.

“If I was a grown man who could only bench 135, you’d never see it on video unless someone secretly recorded it, and even then I would never admit it was me,” blogger Matt Walsh joked.

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Other Democrats have been more pugnacious about their powerlifting. Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed fired back after a social media user undercounted his weight in another recent workout video.

“That’s 315, habibi,” he replied in a post that’s been viewed 5 million times.

Still, the appearance of placating voters runs its own risks, according to Democratic consultant Pat Dennis.

“I would caution Democrats against pulling out a checklist – ‘For young men, we’ll do some bench pressing; for young women, we’ll talk about the Barbie movie,’” he told CNN. “People don’t like checklists and they don’t like being pandered to. They remember you for who you are. You need to be authentic, in a way that is believable.”

While El-Sayed may see a midterm lift in Michigan, where he’s vying to replace Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) in a crowded Democratic primary, Swalwell has little to earn apart from plaudits from party insiders for toeing the line.

Since it was uncovered that he was unknowingly dating a Chinese spy, Swalwell has been the butt of GOP jokes on Capitol Hill anytime he’s opened his mouth.

He cooperated with the FBI in its investigation and was cleared of wrongdoing in 2023, but his opponents continue to wield the Chinese spy jokes as a cudgel to silence the previously vocal progressive. He has been heckled at town halls in his district and had public meltdowns after GOP colleagues have previously made jokes at his expense.