Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) said Tuesday that a staffer who works for him received a call from a man who threatened to come to Swalwell’s congressional office with an assault rifle and kill him.
“A staffer of mine—who’s 1 month into her job—received a call from a man saying he’s coming to our office w/ an assault rifle to kill me. I hesitate to share this but how else do I tell you we are in violent times, & the architects are Trump & McCarthy. Bloodshed is coming,” Swalwell wrote on Twitter, referring to former President Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), a pair that he frequently criticizes.
According to a report of the threat posted by Swalwell on Twitter, the man asked where the congressman was, inquired if he could speak with him and said he had guns.
“Mentioned he has guns and wants to ‘F— him up.’ Also made a statement that he will come to the office, or to wherever he is at to hurt him. He will bring guns (AR-15s) to the office to kill him and f— him up,” according to the threat report.
The report also notes that the man “used the F slur several times” and “went on a rant regarding gay issues.” The man then called a second time. The report says “we got a 30 second recording of him using the f slur after he made the threat.”
It is unclear when Swalwell’s staffer received the threat, though the report says it came in at around 11:30 a.m.
Tuesday was not the first time Swalwell has shared a threat received by his office. Earlier this month, he posted audio of a death threat against his wife and children. In April 2019, he shared a threatening voicemail he received.
The California Democrat is not alone among Trump critics in receiving threatening messages while serving in office.
Last month, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) shared a compilation of roughly a dozen vulgar and threatening calls received at his congressional office.
Threats targeting lawmakers have drastically increased in recent years. Between 2017 and 2021, the number of threats against members of Congress looked into by the U.S. Capitol Police, including directions of interest and direct threats, surged by 144 percent, according to numbers provided to The Hill in July.
From the beginning of this year through March 23, the U.S. Capitol Police’s Threat Assessment Team had opened about 1,820 cases.
Emily Brooks contributed.