House votes to authorize commission to investigate Jan. 6 insurrection Ledyard King, Savannah Behrmann and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY
House vote authorizes commission for Jan. 6 Capitol riot probe, 35 Republicans approve
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WASHINGTON – Thirty-five Republicans joined Democrats Wednesday in passing a bill to create a bipartisan, independent commission to thoroughly investigate the Capitol riot Jan. 6, giving hope to backers it might also pass the Senate despite Republican Leader Mitch McConnell s opposition.
The bill creating the panel would give the commission subpoena power to call witnesses and produce a report by Dec. 31. Modeled after the widely hailed, independent panel that investigated the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, this commission would be charged with scrutinizing what provoked a pro-Trump mob to assault the Capitol and what can be done to prevent another attack.
House votes to authorize commission to investigate Jan. 6 insurrection Ledyard King, Savannah Behrmann and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY
GOP opposes Jan. 6 panel, McConnell hits pause
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WASHINGTON – Thirty-five Republicans joined Democrats Wednesday in passing a bill to create a bipartisan, independent commission to thoroughly investigate the Capitol riot Jan. 6, giving hope to backers it might also pass the Senate despite Republican Leader Mitch McConnell s opposition.
The bill creating the panel would give the commission subpoena power to call witnesses and produce a report by Dec. 31. Modeled after the widely hailed, independent panel that investigated the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, this commission would be charged with scrutinizing what provoked a pro-Trump mob to assault the Capitol and what can be done to prevent another attack.
AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced during a floor speech on Wednesday morning that he would oppose the creation of a commission to investigate the events surrounding January 6, 2021, protests at the Capitol, calling the proposal “slanted and unbalanced.”
“It’s not at all clear what new facts or additional investigation yet another commission could lay on top of the existing efforts by law enforcement and Congress,” McConnell said.
The bill working its way through the House and likely to pass soon would create a 10 person commission, evenly split between Democrat and Republican legislators, with subpoena power to gather evidence related to the events of January 6. McConnell’s opposition signals that the House bill is likely to have difficulty finding 60 votes in the Senate to get past a likely filibuster. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is promising that a vote in the Senate will take place, and some GOP Senators have given the idea