The special committee created to investigate the Jan. 6 riot won’t include Republican appointees, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Wednesday.
The California Republican announced the decision moments after Speaker Nancy Pelosi blocked two of the five GOP appointees from participating.
“Unless Speaker Pelosi reverses course and seats all five Republican nominees, Republicans will not be party to their sham process and will instead pursue our own investigation of the facts,” McCarthy said.
PELOSI BLOCKS GOP PICKS FOR RIOT PANEL
Earlier in the day, Pelosi issued a statement announcing she will not allow Reps. Jim Banks of Indiana or Jim Jordan of Ohio, to participate on the panel, even though the Republican lawmakers were selected by McCarthy.
“With respect for the integrity of the investigation, with an insistence on the truth and with concern about statements made and actions taken by these Members, I must reject the recommendations of Representatives Banks and Jordan to the Select Committee,” Pelosi said in a statement.
The legislation creating the panel included a provision allowing Pelosi to block GOP appointees.
McCarthy issued a scathing statement criticizing Pelosi for the unprecedented move.
“This represents an egregious abuse of power and will irreparably damage this institution,” McCarthy said. “Denying the voices of members who have served in the military and law enforcement, as well as leaders of standing committees, has made it undeniable that this panel has lost all legitimacy and credibility and shows the Speaker is more interested in playing politics than seeking the truth.”
Jordan said Pelosi’s decision shows the panel “is nothing more than a political charade.”
Both Jordan and Banks were among dozens of Republicans who voted against certifying some of the 2020 presidential election results. Some Democrats on the riot committee have also voted in the past against certifying presidential election results, but for GOP winners.
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Democrats want the panel to investigate the role of former President Donald Trump and Republicans in inciting the riot and facilitating the breach of the Capitol by hundreds of protesters. Republicans say the panel should examine the serious security lapses and lack of security preparation ahead of the protests, and they want to know whether Democratic leaders denied help offered ahead of time by the National Guard.
The panel will include one House Republican, appointed by Pelosi — Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, a fierce Trump critic who voted to impeach the then-president in the waning days of his term.
