Liberal East Bay Congressman and one-time presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is joining the increasingly crowded race to become the next governor of California.

Remember when, five weeks ago, in the early days of the government shutdown, Rep. Eric Swalwell told everyone that an "Epstein bomb" was about to drop that would cause a "jailbreak" among a faction of Republicans who would turn tail on President Trump? That certainly came true, and we're still waiting to see what the full political implications will be for our Dear Leader.

Last Friday we learned that Swalwell was likely getting ready to announce a run for governor, just as Trump's Justice Department announced a mortgage fraud probe into Swalwell — using the same political cudgel Trump has been using to punish enemies like New York Attorney General Leticia James and Senator Adam Schiff.

And now the 45-year-old Swalwell is making his governor's run official, setting up a possible scenario in which we exchange one persistent thorn in Trump's side, Gavin Newsom, with another.

Swalwell made the announcement on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Thursday night, with Kimmel introducing him saying, "He does battle with the forces of MAGA every day and the president doesn't like him at all."

The two spent the bulk of the interview discussing the Epstein files and the situation in DC. Kimmel asked, "What are we going to do?" about all the Trump nonsense.

"I'll tell you what I'm gonna do," Swalwell said, in an obvious setup. "I love California. It's the greatest country in the world. But that's why it pisses me off to see Californians running through the fields where they work away from ICE agents, or troops in our streets, or cancer research being canceled. It's horrifying."

Swalwell continued, "Our state, this great state, needs a fighter and a protector, someone who will bring prices down, lift wages up. We can say we're the fourth largest economy in the world... and I love to brag about that, but what does that mean if you can't afford to live here?"

"So I've been in these fights, as a city councilmember, up in Dublin, my hometown, as a prosecutor in Oakland, and taking on the most corrupt president ever in the US Congress," Swalwell said. "So I came here tonight, Jimmy, to tell you and your audience, that I'm running to be the next governor of California."

Kimmel then joked that Swalwell would have to "figure out" his "beard situation... more beard or less beard, because we're kind of in a beard nether region right now."

Swalwell joins a race that has been led in early polling by his former colleague in the House, Katie Porter. And also running are former HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and billionaire political gadfly Tom Steyer, who just announced on Wednesday.