Sara Azari, who is serving as former Representative Eric Swalwell’s defense attorney, said she believes a “problem” with #MeToo is when women “regret what they consider wrong judgment.”
Her comments come as Washington, D.C., faces its own #MeToo movement that culminated in two members of Congress resigning amid allegations of sexual misconduct. Azari represents Swalwell, a California Democrat who resigned from Congress earlier in April and suspended his gubernatorial campaign as he faced multiple sexual assault allegations that he has denied.
Newsweek reached out to Azari for comment via email.
Eric Swalwell’s Attorney Names Her ‘Problem’ With #MeToo
Azari responded to a post by conservative journalist John Ziegler on X, who wrote that the “strangest & most baffling part of modern feminism,” in his view, is the “extreme willingness to embrace a narrative that women are not strong at all, but actually very weak, hopeless, infants, totally unable to control their own actions, at least whenever they need to explain bad behavior.”
Azari wrote: “…Or when they regret what they consider wrong judgment. This is the problem with #metoo. As a woman who’s made her own bad choices and as a lawyer who enforces the constitution, it’s incredibly dangerous.”
She has used similar rhetoric to defend Swalwell during an interview on NewsNation.
“Regret is not rape. So the fact that a day later, years later, or whatnot, you maybe had shame around what you did, or maybe you were in a relationship and shouldn’t have done what you did, doesn’t make it rape,” she said.
What to Know About Eric Swalwell Allegations
A former Swalwell staffer recently alleged two non‑consensual encounters—one in 2019 and another in 2024—with the former congressman, and told investigators she was too intoxicated to consent during the latter incident. Another woman, who appeared publicly with attorney Lisa Bloom, accused him of drugging and assaulting her in a hotel room in 2018.
Swalwell has denied those allegations.
Azari wrote in a statement earlier in April that the accusations are “false, fabricated, and deeply offensive — a calculated and transparent political hit job designed to destroy the reputation of a man who has spent twenty years in public service.”
“The timing, nature, and coordinated rollout of these vile and heinous allegations speak for themselves. This is neither about justice, nor the truth. This is a ruthless and shameless attempt to smear Congressman Swalwell,” she said.
Washington’s #MeToo Moment Spurred by Swalwell Allegations
The allegations against Swalwell are central to Congress’s ongoing MeToo moment. Members of Congress have pushed for more accountability for members who have been accused of sexual misconduct.
Earlier in April, the House Ethics Committee released a list of 28 investigations into members of Congress over the past several decades, shedding new light on alleged misconduct in Washington.
The bipartisan committee said it was “dedicated to maintaining a congressional workplace free from sexual misconduct” as it released the list of cases, some of which ended in members losing their seats, while other cases were never resolved because a member left the House.
“Moreover, unfortunately, there likely exist matters never reported to the Committee,” the committee’s press release read. “As the Committee has repeatedly asserted to the House community, through investigative matters and other actions, it treats allegations of sexual misconduct with the utmost seriousness.”
Representative Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican, opted to retire from Congress amid calls for his expulsion, following months of scrutiny over an affair with a staff member who died by suicide last year. He initially said he would not seek reelection in November anyway, but his early departure came amid the growing outrage from both sides of the aisle.
Republican Women Lead Congress’ #MeToo Moment
Republican women have been among the leaders of Congress’s reckoning with sexual harassment allegations.
“This is not a party issue. It never was,” South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace told Newsweek in a statement on April 17. “Republican or Democrat, if you are abusing the public trust or covering up your misconduct on the taxpayer’s dime, you should be brought into the light and held accountable. No exceptions. The establishment has kept these records buried for too long. Our subpoena motion puts an end to it.”
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