Top Republican calls for immediate investigation into Swalwell controversy

Longtime Republican Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (Wisc.) on Friday requested that the ethics committee in the House of Representatives investigate the controversy surrounding Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, whose relationship with a reported Chinese spy has raised allegations of scandal this week. 

Swalwell was reportedly involved in some capacity with an alleged Chinese spy several years ago. The woman, identified as Christine Fang, was allegedly associated with numerous politicians in the San Francisco Bay Area, in which Swalwell's district resides. 

Sensenbrenner requested that the House Committee on Ethics "immediately open an investigation into the allegations recently made public by an article in Axios regarding the compromising of Representative Eric Swalwell, a member of Congress and a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence."

"It is unknown how much private and/or classified information Fang had access to as a result of her relationship with Rep. Swalwell," Sensenbrenner wrote in the request, "and whether Rep. Swalwell was compromised as a relationship with her."

Leading House Democrat Nancy Pelosi this week said she doesn't have "any concern about Mr. Swalwell" regarding the potential scandal.