Democrat Rep. Eric Swalwell went viral after he appeared to rip a disruptively loud fart during an interview on MSNBC’s Hardball on Monday night.
There were two men speaking, ̶F̶a̶r̶t̶Swalwell and host Chris Matthews, but viewers (and listeners) blamed the incident on the former because the timing of the congressman's brief pause, mid-anti-Trump diatribe, smelled too suspicious.
Swalwell – who was the first Democrat to drop out of the 2020 presidential race – told BuzzFeed reporter Addy Baird that it wasn’t he who dealt it…
NEWS: SWALWELL denies it was him who farted on MSNBC: pic.twitter.com/IYmHwYfuGf
— Addy Baird (@addysue) November 19, 2019
…to which Federalist co-founder Sean Davis replied: “He who denied it supplied it. Everyone knows this.”
The question “who was the farter?” has swiftly eclipsed all other political affairs in the US and propelled the humorous hashtag #fartgate to the top of Twitter trends.
I'm not saying that Swalwell was definitely the one that ripped it, but in slow motion you can see his body lift up momentarily as he takes a break from speaking just as the fart is unleashed. #fartgate pic.twitter.com/6qYw8r0fTf
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) November 19, 2019
#fartgate is the #1 trend in United States. Ladies and gentlemen, America is finally great again. pic.twitter.com/2SweUGKYVI
— David Bozell (@DavidBozell) November 19, 2019
Trump is going to tweet about Eric Fartwell and win all 50 states #fartgate
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) November 19, 2019
I get that some of you think Chris Matthews was the farter, but do you really think he has the skill and control to not only drop it perfectly between Swalwell's words, but also choreograph it seamlessly with Swalwell's body movement? #fartgate pic.twitter.com/6qYw8r0fTf
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) November 19, 2019
[November 18, 2029]
— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) November 19, 2019
Kid: Dad - when did our country become so united and started actually working together again?
Me: Ten years ago a man named Eric Swalwell ripped a fart so amazing on TV that both parties got together to post memes, literally transcending politics. #fartgate
If Trump tweets about #fartgate I honestly don't think I can go to work tomorrow.
— David Martosko (@dmartosko) November 19, 2019
Has anyone made a joke about Swalwell being the whistleblower yet? I just got here #fartgate
— Jessica Fletcher (@heckyessica) November 19, 2019
Eric Swalwell's farts are currently polling higher than @KamalaHarris in Iowa#fartgate
— Michael Malice (@michaelmalice) November 19, 2019
