A House panel investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol plans to seek electronic records from hundreds of individuals, including elected lawmakers.
Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat who chairs a specially created committee investigating the Capitol riot, said the committee wants records of texts, phone calls, social media posts, and other forms of communications from individuals connected to the incident, including members of Congress.
Democrats have accused some Republicans and former President Donald Trump of inciting the riot and even facilitating protesters who forced their way into the Capitol by overwhelming the police. Democrats are also eager to learn about communications between Republicans and Trump on the day of the riot.
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“We have quite an exhaustive list of people,” Thompson said. “I won’t tell you who they are, but it’s several hundred people that make up the list of individuals we plan to contact.”
Thompson did not provide the names of lawmakers whose records the panel may seek.
Thompson said the committee is not going to subpoena the information immediately but will try to obtain it by contacting the individuals, as well as the telecommunication and social media companies.
“There will be some letters and some other things, and we’ll take it from there,” Thompson said.
The panel met once so far, holding a hearing with law enforcement officers who fought off the Jan. 6 protesters in and around the Capitol.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, formed the committee after Senate Republicans blocked appointing an independent, bipartisan commission.
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Pelosi appointed two anti-Trump Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, to serve on the panel. All other House Republicans oppose the committee, arguing it is partisan and will serve as a tool to bash the GOP ahead of the critical midterm elections.
The committee may target the records of Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican and Trump ally who spoke to the president the day of the attack. McCarthy, a GOP witness said, engaged in a tense exchange with Trump after asking him to call off the protesters.
