Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) said he had been cleared of suspicion after MSNBC’s official “Hardball” Twitter account said a loud sound resembling flatulence during his interview did not come from Swalwell, but from a “coffee mug scraping across the desk” of host Chris Matthews.
Swalwell made the comment in a tweet on Monday night.
During Monday night’s “Hardball,” a noise that sounded like a case of flatulence could be heard during the interview.
“Chris, so far the evidence is uncontradicted that the president used taxpayer dollars to help him cheat an election,” Swalwell told Matthews regarding impeachment proceedings of President Trump.
A loud flatulence sound could clearly be heard during a pause in Swalwell’s answer, prompting the clip to immediately go viral.
The official “Hardball” Twitter account addressed the issue later on Monday night.
“Fartgate” trended at #1 on Twitter for several hours Monday night into Tuesday, with many media members, the president’s eldest son, and activist and actress Alyssa Milano weighing in.