A whopping 35 Republicans from a broad range of states voted to authorize the Jan. 6 Commission in the House Wednesday. It put the support for the commission to over 250 bipartisan members.
The vote came just hours after the Capitol Police produced a letter attacking officials they protected on Jan. 6 who are refusing to support an investigation into those who beat them with bars and showered them with toxic bear spray.
Speaking on MSNBC Wednesday, former Breitbart staffer and USA Today columnist Kurt Bardella said that he thinks Democrats shouldn't be inviting any Republicans to participate in the Jan. 6 Commission.
Democrats have attempted to include Republicans to make the commission a bipartisan one. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) tasked Rep. John Katko (R-NY) with crafting rules for the commission. When he did, McCarthy threw him under the bus and refused to support the effort. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that he too opposed the commission, but it was before 35 House members agreed to support it and before the Capitol Police attacked those who oppose it. Given how long Republicans have defended police officers against those who seek to hold bad cops accountable for brutality, it's unclear how the GOP will be able to spin a public fight with the Capitol Police.
"Democrats should use the tools of their majority and have a select committee," Bardella suggested. "I remember the republicans using the Select Committee on Benghazi to, quote, unquote, investigate for five years having Hillary Clinton testify for 11 hours in front of their committee. There's nothing stopping Democrats that would have given a say in the subpoena process. If they walk away from that, so be it. We can have our own hearings, our own committee. We can get the facts."
He continued: "It's very clear there's only one political party in America that cares about getting the truth. That's the Democratic Party. On some level, asking Republicans to participate in this investigation would be like asking members of al Qaeda to be part of the 9/11 Commission. These people are part of the reason Jan. 6th happened. Through their conduct, actions at the Oversight Committee hearing last week, it's clear that their intent is to be the getaway driver to the arsonists."
See the full discussion in the video below:
the Jan. 6 commissionwww.youtube.com
