The Eric Swalwell implosion just keeps getting worse — and now the fallout may be creeping toward his self-declared best friend, Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego.
Swalwell faces a cascade of allegations involving sexual assault, harassment, and predatory behavior serious enough to prompt a criminal investigation, his dropping out of the California gubernatorial election, a House Ethics Committee investigation, and ultimately, his resignation from Congress.
But this story isn’t going away just because he resigned.
If you haven’t already heard, a video showing Swalwell in bed with a sex worker was shared on social this weekend. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) confirmed its authenticity on Fox News Monday night, telling viewers, "Not only did I receive forensic reporting showing that, you know, that infamous video of him in the hotel room was indeed him — it was not AI-generated — but I'm also being told that… more stuff is going to be dropping in the next 24 hours, and that also potentially the individual that recorded that video in the hotel room was a female and she was underage."
That's a bombshell by any measure, and it means that Swalwell may end up being in serious legal trouble.
But people are asking other questions about the video. It doesn't just show Swalwell, you see: Another man appears in the frame, sitting on the bed. His face isn't visible, but social media erupted almost immediately, with users pointing to his profile and saying it bears a striking resemblance to Sen. Ruben Gallego.
Gallego denies it.
WOW: Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) DENIES being in the video — or even in the room — where Eric Swalwell is seen kissing an alleged s*x worker.
— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) April 14, 2026
Reporter: “Was that you sitting next to him?”
Ruben Gallego: “This is an example of the lies—no I was not sitting next time him. I was… pic.twitter.com/uujw36pBcw
I should be clear: it hasn’t been confirmed that Gallego is the second man in the video, and no one responsible is claiming otherwise. But the speculation is spreading fast on social media, with many conjecturing that Gallego will be the next domino to fall.
There are certainly reasons to believe that the senator is acting suspiciously. Despite his close relationship with Swalwell, he quickly distanced himself from the embattled congressman and his campaign. “I support the ethics committee's investigation and believe Eric Swalwell is no longer fit to be a Member of Congress,” he said in a statement on Monday. “He should be expelled from Congress.”
Related: The Swalwell Scandal Just Got Worse — Way, Way Worse
All fine and good, right? Or overcompensating? Here’s where things get interesting. “I want to be clear: I had no knowledge of the allegations of assault, harassment, and predatory behavior against Eric Swalwell," Gallego stated. "I trusted someone who I believed was a friend, but it is now clear that he is not the person I thought I knew. The women who have come forward have shown courage. They deserve to be believed, to be supported, and to see justice served."
Read that again. A bit defensive, don’t you think? Is that the statement of someone grieving a friendship, or someone engaged in crisis management?
Let’s not forget that Gallego chaired Swalwell's 2020 presidential campaign. The two held joint campaign events, and Swalwell called him his best friend. Now Gallego says Swalwell lived a "double life" and that he had absolutely no idea any of this was happening. That claim is getting harder to sell by the hour, especially when multiple media outlets have reported that Swalwell’s predatory behavior has been an “open secret” in Washington for years — including CNN:
CNN reporting that this Swallwell scandal was an open secret for MONTHS among the Democrat campaigners for California governor.
— Natalie Jean Beisner (@NJBeisner) April 14, 2026
That just goes to show you how garbage they all are.
Vote Republican in the primary. pic.twitter.com/kVHVqzulXE
So, did Gallego know about Swalwell? I’d say there’s a significant chance that he did.
And then there's the record on Gallego himself. In 2009, the Arizona Republic reported that Gallego, then a top aide to a Phoenix City Councilman, verbally harassed a female intern, berating and intimidating her in front of her co-workers.
FLASHBACK: In 2009, the Arizona Republic reported that now-Senator Ruben Gallego, then a top aide to a Phoenix City Councilman, verbally harassed a female intern and "berated and intimidated her in front of co-workers."
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) April 13, 2026
Gallageo allegedly yelled and pounded his desk.
The aid… https://t.co/olNHr9Ry46 pic.twitter.com/L9mZ28G05g
He also divorced his pregnant wife, sealed the court records, and then married a younger woman. Now, he’s desperately trying to position himself as standing on moral high ground.
According to Brian Anderson, a former press secretary and researcher for former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, things are “about to get worse” for Gallego.
Based on what I'm hearing, it's about to get worse for @RubenGallego
— Brian Anderson (@AZBrianAnderson) April 14, 2026
I don’t know whether the second man in the video is Gallego. But the speed with which Gallego threw Swalwell overboard feels less about moral clarity and more about self-preservation.
Regardless of whether he’s in that video or not, social media is already asking whether Gallego is in trouble.
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