House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is in Poland with lawmakers from both parties to meet foreign leaders about the nearby war in Ukraine, and one member’s participation in the trip is raising eyebrows.
Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy’s decision to participate in the trip is notable since she is a member of the Democratic-led Jan. 6 select committee. The panel is probing the events of the day when supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol in an attempt to overturn his loss to Democratic rival Joe Biden, who won the Electoral College in 2020 and took office two weeks later. House Republicans, led by McCarthy, have strongly criticized the Jan. 6 panel’s work, and the California Republican prevented his own members from participating in it.
Over the weekend, lawmakers met with the prime minister of Poland, the defense minister of Poland, and the U.S. ambassador to Poland, in addition to visiting Ukrainian officials and refugees, McCarthy’s office said.
Critics of Murphy’s participation in the trip argued it raised concerns about the optics of the investigation. One source said an independent investigator would not partake in a trip with individuals linked to the investigation.
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“Murphy is a member of the most important investigation Congress has ever conducted,” one senior Democratic lawmaker said. “To call it bad judgment that she’s hanging out in Europe with Jan. 6 witnesses is the understatement of the century.”
Murphy’s office did not respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
But several lawmakers praised Murphy’s participation, showing members are willing to work across the aisle on key issues when needed.
Murphy’s participation shows “that our country is capable of working together in standing up for democracy,” said Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat. “The fact that Rep. Murphy [is] joining a bipartisan delegation is a good thing.”
Another Democratic lawmaker dismissed the notion that her decision to go on the congressional delegation trip, known as a CODEL, could affect the investigation in any way.
“Kevin McCarthy can’t control his own caucus — certainly he’s not going to be able to influence Democrats,” the source said about the Vietnamese-born Murphy. “Anyone who has ever heard Stephanie speak about the events of the 6th, her obligation to the Constitution to the nation that took her in when she was a refugee — the idea that, like, going to see refugees and being on the same trip as Kevin McCarthy would somehow impact an investigation that she’s doing is unbelievably outrageous”
While Republicans have largely been critical of the select committee, several said they feel it is important that Congress comes together and takes strides to have a full understanding of what is happening abroad despite domestic differences.
“Everyone knows the Jan. 6 committee isn’t serious. It’s political theater,” one GOP lawmaker said. “Real oversight is going on a CODEL to see the refugee situation on the ground. That’s what this is.”
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Another Republican member noted that McCarthy has had a long working relationship with Murphy, and the official does not believe the inquiry has had an impact on their ability to work together.
“I don’t suspect that friendship ended after Stephanie was put on the [Jan. 6] committee, and I don’t have a problem with it,” the GOP lawmaker said. “Most of what the [Democrats] do is a joke, not just the commission she sits on.”
