A bipartisan group of senators will hold hearings to investigate the Wednesday attack on the U.S. Capitol and examine how security was so easily breached.
Democratic and Republican leaders on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and Senate Committee on Rules and Administration announced Friday the launching of a joint investigation.
“Wednesday’s violent and criminal acts directed at our Capitol, a symbol of American Democracy, will forever be a stain on our nation’s history. Due to the heroic acts of many, the perpetrators of this attack failed to achieve their goal. It is our duty as bipartisan leaders of the Senate committees with jurisdiction over homeland security, oversight and Capitol operations to examine the security failures that led to Wednesday’s attack,” the committee chairmen and ranking members said in a statement.
The committees will conduct oversight through hearings into the incident and vowed to make changes to prevent a similar breach from happening.
Michigan Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is the ranking member of the homeland security committee. He, however, is expected to become the chairman once Georgia Democratic Sens.-elect Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock are sworn in because the Senate will be evenly divided by Republicans and Democrats. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio will be the top Republican on the committee.
Republican Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri and Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota are at present the leaders of the rules committee.
