House Republicans Continue to Look the Other Way
As we reach mid-May, Congress has yet to make much progress in establishing a bi-partisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol, as Republicans intentionally drag their feet.
In February, just a month after Trump’s violent mob descended on the US Capitol Building, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced plans for Congress to establish an outside and independent commission to investigate "the facts and causes" related to the Jan 6 attack. Pelosi explained that the commission was intended to be modeled on the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks commission to “ensure that it does not happen again."
Nearly three months have passed, and the only information that has been gleaned is the confirmed notion that Congressional Republicans are exceptionally hesitant to do any digging into the events leading up to Trump’s attempted coup of his own federal government.
The latest negotiation phase concerning the formation of a commission now involves Speaker Pelosi assigning a key senior Democratic committee chair to negotiate with his Republican counterpart to reach a consensus. Reps. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and John Katko (R-NY), the chairman and ranking member of the Homeland Security Committee, are now in charge of the talks, and if they can reach an agreement that meets the muster of both sides of leadership, then a floor vote in the House could come quickly.
While it appears that many Congressional Republicans appear to be intent on blocking any kind of investigation, and the question of whether or not the GOP will ever allow a real investigation into Trump supporters’ actions on Jan 6 remains to be answered. Rep. Katko is someone who, generally speaking, should be willing and able to get his caucus to come around to a “yes.” Katko voted to impeach Trump and is on deck to be the Homeland Security Chairman if and when Republicans win back the majority of members in the House.
There have been many clues along the way that have shown the GOP’s reticence in pushing forward with any kind of examination into the insurgency. Below are some of the key events that reflect the only interest Republicans have in an investigation commission is to stall its formation until after the next Midterm election, if not longer.
From my article The Trump Platform is Alive and Well, published in April:
“It might be tempting to overlook Donald Trump’s ongoing influence over the Republican Party due to his uncharacteristic silence over the past few months, such as the continued and unexplainable loyalty House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy continues to show Trump, even after his insurrection almost got McCarthy killed. But, Van Duyne’s election is even more telling, and the principles ascribed to Trump still remain popular among conservatives.
As long as ‘loser Trump’ is not delivering the message directly, the bulk of the Republican Party appears content to continue to vote in favor of Trumpian policies, which ultimately supports Trump and his power over the GOP. Considering Trump’s epic fail in the 2020 election, his latest move to transform himself from puppet to puppet master and continue an omnipotent presence could be seen as impressive — if only it weren’t so alarming.” (continue reading the entire article here.)
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Rep. McCarthy have objected at every stage to suggestions made by Democrats for the bi-partisan commission. At first, they balked over the panel's membership and claimed that Democrats would have too many seats within the committee and, therefore, too much power.
Next was the McConnell/McCarthy complaint that the commission chair, who would likely be a Democrat, could unilaterally issue subpoenas. This was resolved when Speaker Pelosi agreed to an even 50-50 split in seats, with an addendum that subpoenas could only be issued on a bipartisan basis.
McConnell and McCarthy then disagreed that the purpose of a Jan 6. commission should not focus on Jan. 6 because that would immediately assign blame to Donald Trump. The GOP leaders wanted to extend the commission's investigation to include “other political violence.”
Republicans are not even concerned about hiding the fact that they appear to have something to hide. Now the focus of McCarthy is on ousting Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) from her leadership position, simply because she voted to impeach Trump and publicly stated that Republicans should be speaking out and telling the truth about the events of Jan 6.
From my article Army Leadership Intentionally Weakened US Capitol Security Ahead of Attack:
“On March 3, the Commander for the DC National Guard testified before Congress and explained that his ability to activate his reservist troops had been intentionally hampered in the weeks leading up to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, despite the overwhelming danger of a possible attack. He also told lawmakers that he would have ‘immediately’ activated his forces to assist US Capitol Police on Jan. 6 if his authority had not been restricted by Army leadership and the Pentagon.
General William J. Walker explained to the Senate Rules Committee and Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee at yesterday’s hearing evaluating the security breakdown, “I would have sent them there immediately as soon as I hung up.” Walker continued, “My next call would have been to my subordinate commanders, to get every single guardsman in this building and everybody that's helping the Metropolitan Police...to the Capitol, without delay" to report to the most senior USCP officer on duty.” (continue reading the entire article here.)
It is now mid-May and to say that the process of investigating has been delayed seems like an understatement when no formal commission has yet to be formed. Considering the mass of information on the breakdown in command on Jan. 6, some appearing to be intentional, we are no closer to formally examining any of it in a bipartisan way. This egregious fact alone should sound an alarm for each and every American.
Below are more articles published in SHERO over the past several months that detail some of the various breakdowns in Capitol security and the undeniable role some federal government members played in making Congress vulnerable to an attack. I recommend you read the following articles and then contact your Representative and both Senators to demand that this Jan. 6 Commission be formed immediately, with no further delays.
Was QAnon Congress A Part of the Coup? (Part 2): Welcome to Part 2 of my series: delving into the events of last week's attack on the US Capitol while placing the facts and evidence coming at us quickly into some kind of context that makes sense.
The FBI Appears Rattled (Part 3): Welcome to Part 3 of my series: delving into the events of last week's attack on the US Capitol while placing the facts and evidence coming at us quickly into some kind of context that makes sense.
QAnon in the Capitol and the National Guard (Part 4): Right-wing extremist militias have been a threat for years, and we've known that military members participate-so, why has the FBI suddenly decided to properly vet troops days before the inauguration?
Tuberville and RAGA Now Directly Implicated in Trump's Coup: A social media post made the night before the attack on the US Capitol could be the blueprint for deciphering exactly who was involved in aiding and abetting Donald Trump.
Congressman Allegedly Declares Civil War Has Begun: Local leader of the right-wing militant Oath Keepers group, says Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosar told his organization that the US was in a civil war: 'We just haven't started shooting yet.'
Hawley and Cruz Are Still the Problem: Despite the amount of attention Marjorie Taylor Greene has amassed lately, the real danger for our government lies with allowing the power of Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz to go unchecked.
Houston, We Have an Oath Keepers Problem: While investigations into the Jan 6th attack on the US Capitol produce several arrests and more leads, one thing has become apparent - the Proud Boys aren't the only domestic terrorist game in town.
Capitol Officers Suspended Before Hearings Begin: As the number of Capitol officers being investigated for their roles in the Jan 6. attack goes from 10 to 35, six officers are suspended with pay, and Congress prepares for a series of hearings.
Republicans Pretend to Fight Dark Money: Sen. Whitehouse detailed the increased unethical influence that conservative organizations have bought to maintain a chokehold over the judicial nomination process since the Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United opened the dark money floodgates in 2010.
Amee Vanderpool writes the SHERO Newsletter and is an attorney, published author, contributor to newspapers and magazines, and analyst for BBC Radio. She can be reached at avanderpool@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter at @mamasreallyrule.
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Bipartisanship should not be sought or celebrated by the Democrats. Little is gained from the effort, the GOP constantly burns us, & we only stand to lose ground whenever it does happen. I'd much rather see focus on working to guarantee the rights & access for all eligible voters, & end the archaic policies designed to suppress the will of the people, whether through gerrymandering, the filibuster, or the Electoral College. It's time we leave the regression of Republicans behind.
Why wouldn't the Republicans drag their feet on this? Do they really want to empower a commission which would of necessity point its finger at them?