California Dem says he’ll consider potential White House run after midterms

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) on Monday said he would consider a 2020 presidential run after the midterm elections in November.

“I’m going to do all I can first to win my way back to Congress,” Swalwell said on CNN. “And then after the midterms I’m going to consider it.”

Asked by CNN host Poppy Harlow why he’d be the Democratic Party’s best presidential candidate, Swalwell said President Trump has taken a “wrecking ball” to so many of the freedoms that helped someone like him get an opportunity.

{mosads}

“I was raised to believe that if you work hard it means something,” Swalwell said. “And I think that having an experience and energy to give Americans a health-care guarantee, invest in modern schools, to make sure that we green our grid and our infrastructure, that that is the path forward.”

But for the time being, he said, “the best way to cut our time in hell in half is to win Congress.”

Swalwell, a frequent critic of Trump, has drawn speculation about a potential presidential bid because of the amount of time he’s spent in Iowa, which holds the first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses, since Trump took office.

The Mercury News reported last week that Swalwell has spent more time in Iowa than any other potential Democratic presidential candidate since Trump’s inauguration.

But Swalwell has avoided making any firm commitments regarding possible presidential ambitions.

“Right now my focus is to win at home, earn my way back to Washington to represent my constituents, help other candidates win so we can change the country,” Swalwell told The Mercury News earlier this month.

Swalwell suggested on Aug. 1 that Democrats would impeach the president if Trump fired special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, including with Trump’s campaign colluded with Moscow.

“Fire Mueller and we fire you,” he tweeted.