House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on Thursday doubled down on his call for a bipartisan commission to investigate allegations that members of his chamber contributed to the Jan. 6 Capitol siege.
In his first press briefing since the inauguration of President Joe Biden, the GOP leader also congratulated Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris while criticizing their agenda.
The remarks begin at the 20-minute mark.
“Any member who participated in breaking the law or rioting that way … I think anybody should be held to account in that process,” McCarthy said in answer to a question from a reporter. “I don’t know of any member that has done that. This is why I called for, last week, after this happened, a bipartisan commission. We should get to the bottom of this.”
Democrats have accused Republicans of helping those who breached the Capitol, including Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., who claimed Monday he saw Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., giving a tour to a large group before the incident. Boebert denied it.
“There are so many questions that I [have] personally as a leader,” McCarthy said. “I read in the paper that the FBI, prior to any rally, had information that something was going to happen here, and conveyed that to the Capitol Police. I want to know, why was the Republican leader not notified of that? Why was I not notified to make sure we were protected?”
“Was the National Guard called soon enough? … I have questions about this building, what’s protected,” he added.
“The only way you will be able to answer these questions is through a bipartisan commission,” McCarthy said. “So let’s get and have all the facts before we accuse anybody of anything. But let’s all base it upon the facts and the knowledge that we need to know.”
McCarthy said he also questioned the Biden administration agenda, asking: “Are we helping businesses reopen and getting America back to work? … Are we helping students get back into the classroom after many and millions of these kids have been learning behind computers for nearly a year?”
President Donald Trump “listened to voices who no one else was on either side.”
“They’re watching an administration that says 11 million illegal immigrants are now going to be citizens,” he said of Biden’s executive orders. “You almost have 11 million Americans out of work now. Who’s listening to their voices.”
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