House Republicans plan to counter the Jan. 6 select committee report when it is released this week, arguing that unexamined security failures led to the incident at the Capitol.
The rebuttal to the conclusions of the 18-month investigation will come in a 100-plus page report detailing the failures in responding to the event.
House Republicans planning response to Jan. 6 panel report, GOP rep says https://t.co/mXePrZCurZ pic.twitter.com/V3IpfYYvnf
— The Hill (@thehill) December 18, 2022
As Democrats continue to hammer the issue ahead of the GOP takeover of the House next month, Republicans charge they overlooked the primary issue faced that day in Washington. Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) declared that Capitol Hill police and the FBI were woefully unprepared.
He also accused the Jan. 6 committee of never properly addressing security failures that led to the breach of the Capitol.
Despite clear signals that the demonstration could expand and get out of hand, House Republicans contend that law enforcement never prepared for the possibility.
Banks believed that the committee — hand-selected by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with seven Democrats and two Trump-opposing Republicans — merely engaged in “political payback” against the former president.
Democrats defended their kangaroo committee by asserting they are working to ensure that nothing such as Jan. 6 happens again.
Axios reported that GOP House members plan to release their report simultaneously as the Jan. 6 panel. The outlet noted that Republicans interviewed Capitol Police officers and gathered information on the lack of proper training and equipment to deal with the demonstrators.
This, of course, is in stark contrast to the high-profile public spectacles put on by the select committee in its attempts to place all the blame on former President Trump. To no one’s surprise, this week will see their report ignore any other findings and allege that Trump orchestrated every move.
The committee is also expected to refer criminal charges against Trump and his allies to the Department of Justice. Again, no surprise.
January and the assumption of House control by the coming Republican majority will put an end to the committee’s charade. And while the GOP response will doubtless fill gaps the Democrats intentionally left blank, to see the Jan. 6 committee fade into obscurity will be a welcome sight.
