Pelosi: Trump allies not fit for panel
WASHINGTON – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected two Republicans picked by House GOP Leader Kevin Mccarthy to sit on a committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, citing the “integrity” of the probe.
Pelosi said in a statement Wednesday she won’t accept the appointments of Indiana Rep. Jim Banks, picked by Mccarthy to be the top Republican on the panel, or Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan. Both are allies of former President Donald Trump, whose supporters laid siege to the Capitol.
In the hours after the insurrection, Banks and Jordan voted to overturn Joe Biden’s presidential victory.
“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.
Pelosi has the authority to approve or reject members, per committee rules, though she acknowledged her move is unusual. She said “the unprecedented nature of January 6th demands this unprecedented decision.”
Pelosi’s decision is certain to further inflame tension between the two parties over the insurrection and the House panel that almost all Republicans opposed. Most in the GOP have remained loyal to Trump despite the violent insurrection of his supporters that sent many politicians running for their lives. Mccarthy wouldn’t say for weeks if Republicans would participate in the probe, but on Monday, he sent the five names to Pelosi.
Pelosi said in the statement that she had accepted Mccarthy’s three other picks: Illinois Rep. Rodney Davis, North Dakota Rep. Kelly Armstrong and Texas Rep. Troy Nehls.
Like Jordan and Banks, Nehls voted to overturn Biden’s victory. Armstrong and Davis voted to certify the election.
Mccarthy’s picks came after all but two Republicans opposed the creation of the 13-person select committee in a House vote last month, with most in the GOP arguing that the majority-democratic panel would conduct a partisan probe. House Democrats originally attempted to create an evenly split, independent commission to investigate the insurrection, but that effort fell short when it was blocked by Senate Republicans.
Banks recently traveled with Trump to the U.s.-mexico border and to visit him at his New Jersey golf course. In a statement after Mccarthy selected him for the panel, Banks sharply criticized the Democrats who had set it up.
“Make no mistake, Nancy Pelosi created this committee solely to malign conservatives and to justify the Left’s authoritarian agenda,” Banks said.
Jordan, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, was one of Trump’s most vocal defenders during his two impeachments and last month likened the new investigation to “impeachment three.” Trump was impeached by the House and acquitted by the Senate both times.
The chairman of the panel, Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, said the committee will have a quorum to conduct business whether GOP members are present or not.
Pelosi named eight members of the panel earlier this month: seven Democrats and Republican Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who has criticized Trump and has been the most outspoken member of her caucus against the insurrection.