0 have. the question they ask is why were we so unprotected on january 6 and what has changed since then? getting to the bottom of those questions should be the top priority for all of us in this house. there are serious security vulnerabilities that have been not addressed by this house in 11 months after january 6, and this is what the majority has decided to spend its time on. holding a private citizen who wasn't even part of the administration at the time in contempt for refusing to comply with house democrat subpoenas? this is after more than 600 people have been arrested for their role in the tragedies we saw on january 6. when i get the article i would like to submit for the record, madam speaker, a reuters record talking to the fbi that there was no effort to overthrow the government on january 6. i will submit it once i get a copy of that. i did not bring it with me. but our job, again, is to secure this capitol. we've never seen a breach like the one we saw that day. and it's our responsibility to make sure it doesn't happen again. but that hasn't been done under the leadership of this house. we've had two independent reports regarding january 6, one bipartisan report in the senate and another one commissioned by the speaker herself. that came out in march. these have never been acted on. but this is what the select committee has been working on? the capitol police ig has released seven reports related to january 6, making recommendations on what is needed to secure this capitol. to my disappointment, the majority has not acted in a meaningful way to ensure that all 103 ig findings are implemented. these reports have all told us what the problems are and the recommendations on how to fix them, but congress, us, have failed to even debate these changes let alone act on them. we know massive changes to intel, perimeter protection, training, leadership structure, decision-making processes and many, many more are needed, but neither the select committee nor the committee on house administration seem at all interested in ensuring these changes are made. a committee on house administration which has oversight of security hasn't held a single hearing since august 5, with no upcoming hearings scheduled, according to the majority's website. the select committee, right now as we see, is clearly focused on political subpoenas. and without objection, i'd like to introduce these articles into the record, madam speaker. >> without objection, so ordered. >> thank you. additionally a number of questions from that day still remain unanswered. i'm still waiting for the speaker of the house to answer a letter i sent her back in february that asks why the national guard requests, by then police chief, was designed. why was the speaker involved in eventually approving the request. why the house sergeant of arms has refused to comply with preservation and production requests from my office. and we have many, many more questions about why the capitol was so unprepared that day. our top priority should be ensuring our capitol is never as vulnerable as it was on january 6, but this majority has done absolutely nothing to make the security changes needed to make this capitol safer. madam speaker, we must do better. we have not fixed the institutional problems with our security apparatus that led to the lack of preparation, the danger that our brave officers were put in on that day and any other possible day like that in the future. that's a failure of leadership in this institution. we must fix the problems that led to the terrible security posture here, and i will tell you after witnessing what we saw a few different days and security postures this house was put into a couple other days since january 6, and i urge you to talk to the brave officers that stand around these buildings and protect all of us every day. ask them the same question i do. ask them if we have put them in a better position than they were in on january 5th. the answer out of every single officer i asked that question to is no. what is stopping this house from fixing the problems? it's a lack of will. a lack of focusing on the true issues that led for them to be put in a dangerous spot on january 5th. instead we're talking politics. it's wrong and we must do better. i've said time and time again and i stand willing to work with my democratic colleagues to make this house, this capitol, safer for everyone. instead it's all about political points like the one being scored today. i'm disappointed, you can tell. my frustration is going to continue to boil over until we're if a position to fix the problems that i've laid out and that we know exist. i yield back. >> the gentleman from mississippi. >> madam speaker, in response to the gentleman from illinois's statement, the select committee actually held an interview for offices who put their lives on the line defending all of us who work here in this body. so i assure you my directions to the committee have always been we'll look at all the facts and circumstances surrounding what occurred. we are genuinely interested in getting to the facts. we're working to get the answers, and that's why we are on the floor today, to get answers from steve bannon about what he knew, what he did leading up to january 6. also the gentleman from indiana, i'm glad he finally agreed that the select committee has a legitimate, legislative purpose, and that's why we're here today pursuing that legislative purpose. i'm happy that the record will reflect his comments. with that i yield to the gent gentlelady. >> madam speaker, i rise to the level of steve bannon as a member of congress. it didn't have to be this way. he could have done the patriotic thing and cooperated with our bipartisan committee. if mr. bannon is proud of the role he played in connection with january 6, he should be eager to tell his side of the story. and, instead, he's acting like a man who has something to hide. our committee seeks only the truth. that is our legal charge and our moral obligation. we cannot let any individual impede our inquiry, and we will not tolerate mr. bannon's evasion. why must we be so unrelenting in our pursuit of truth? because on january 6, the greatest nation on earth came under attack. and this attack wasn't carried out by officials in beijing, moscow or turan or foreign terrorists, even. it was regular americans who were radicalized because they believed outrageous lies fed to them by other americans in positions of power and influence. the attack was launched against the seat and symbol of our republic. it was designed to disrupt the certification of the presidential election results, to defy the will of the voters. this was no peaceful protest in a proud american tradition, it was violent and vicious. members of the mob wielded weapons that called for the death of the vice president. they hunted members of congress. they caused severe harm to law enforcement officers, and the real disservice to the police comes from those who want to whitewash the violence of january 6 and pretend that the riot of that day was anything short of the violent attack that it was, aimed at derailing the peaceful transfer of power. america is not just a place, it's an idea. and on january 6, there was an attack on the very idea of america. and i believe that patriots of all political stripes should want to protect our capitol, this country and her constitution. our committee will make a full accounting of what happened -- >> the gentle lady's time has exp expired. -- and prevent this from ever happening again. >> the gentlelady from wyoming. >> i would like to yield three minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. aguilar. >> the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. >> like many of our colleagues, i was here in the violent attack on our capitol. i saw the doors shaking, rioting of many who wanted to enter. i saw the policemen rolling up their sleeves, preparing for the even eventuality. and i saw capitol police saving people in this chamber. their actions saved lives. but what we didn't see was the officers engaging in brutal hand-to-hand combat. officer fanone told us he was grabbed, beaten and tased, all while being called a traitor to this country. this is what officers dealt with defending our democracy. some lost their lives. many are living with the physical wound and trauma they suffered that day. this is what our officers dealt with defending our democracy. officer harry dunn told us more than six months later, january 6 still isn't over for me. these officers are heroes. i want to thank the chair and the vice chair for their leadership in making our first hearing directly from those heroes in their own words. we wanted to hear and make sure that all of our colleagues in this country heard firsthand what we experienced on the ground that day. we asked them to explain the violence they had to endure to protect our democratic process, and in return, they made one simple request, to get to the bottom of this. they want answers, and quite frankly, they deserve answers. so far the metro pd and capitol police have been excellent allies in this investigation. they have cooperated, shared their stories and expertise and provided us with key evidence and accounts of the violence they endured that day. and we owe it to them to see this investigation through. the order we make today is a conclusive roadblock to this investigation. we owe our lives on the line to the officers who protected us that day. we deserve answers, and this committee intends to get to those answers as much as necessary. i plead you vote yes. the gentleman from mississippi. >> madam speaker, i yield three minutes to the gentleman from illinois, senator kinsinger and a member of the air national guard. >> i thank the gentleman for yielding. don't let my side use the security posture as the straw man argument in this. the reality is that the equivalent of blaming the victim of a crime for the crime, and while it is important, that's not what we're here to talk about today. madam speaker, voting on a criminal contempt resolution is not the position we hoped to be in, but steve bannon went out of his way to earn this resolution before us, and now we must approve it. mr. bannon's willful disregard for the select committee subpoena demonstrates his utter contempt for the american people's right to know how the attacks on january 6 came about. he has advanced a ludicrous legal argument in support of his decision not to corroborate or comply, a decision that defies the rule of law and the american people. mr. bannon's actions put him in the center of the investigation surrounding january 6. his own words strongly suggest that the actions of the mob that stormed the capitol and invaded this very chamber came as no surprise to him. he and a few others were, by all accounts, involved in planning that day's events and encouraged by those who attacked the cap capitol, our officers and our democracy. i have no doubt that mr. bannon's scorn for our subpoena, but no one, and i repeat no one, is above the law, and we need to hear from him. as the select committee's contempt report states, it is mr. bannon who predicted on january 5 with chilling accuracy, quote, all hell is going to break loose tomorrow. on his radio show that day he stated, quote, it's not going to happen like you think it's going to happen, okay? it's going to be quite extraordinarily different. all i can say is, strap in. you made this happen. and tomorrow it's game day. so strap in, let's get ready. and it was mr. bannon who is recorded as saying, quote, it's all converging, and now we're on the point of attack tomorrow. mr. bannon said these things publicly as a private citizen, someone deeply involved with stop the steal movement, and he said them nearly three years after leaving his job at the white house. mr. bannon was also reportedly among the small group of trump confidants assembled at the willard hotel to stop the election count. is there any wonder that the select committee wants to hear from him, that we want to see any related materials he has. furthermore, does anyone believe his testimony is protected by a blanket? madam speaker, steve bannon is a key witness to the select committee's probe. he has yet to say or produce anything in response to the subpoena, and his assertion of executive privilege is far-fetched in the extreme and not his to make. i urge my colleagues to join me to support the contempt l resolution, and i yield back. >> the gentlelady from wyoming. >> madam speaker, i yield three minutes to the gentleman from maryland, mr. raskin. >> the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. >> i thank the distinguished gentlelady from wyoming, and thank you, madam speaker. today donald trump said the insurrection took place on november 3rd. no, mr. trump, i'm sorry. that's what we call an election in america, an election that was validated by more than 60 federal and state courts, including before eight judges nominated to the bench by president trump himself and all the way up to the united states supreme court, all of them rejecting every claim of electoral fraud and corruption that was advanced. we know an insurrection when we see one in this body, because we lived through one. under the banner of this continuing and deranged big lie, the stop the steal movement brought down a violent insurrection against this congress in an attemptive coup against vice president mike pence that interrupted the county of collected college votes in united american history, produced the worst attack on congress since 1812 and injured and wounded more than 140 police officers, capitol officers, metropolitan police department officers and others, breaking their noses, breaking their necks, breaking their vertebrae, breaking their arms, breaking their legs, breaking their hearts and their spirits. we are investigating the attack on american democracy because we are americans. we are investigating the attack on congress by domestic enemies of our constitution because we are sworn to do so by our oaths of office. but now the big lie has become a big cover-up. after being impeached twice by the house, after losing in 61 different courts, after seeing a 57-43 vote against him in the u.s. senate in the most sweeping, bipartisan, senate vote in american history, trump now tries to get his followers like steve bannon not to testify here and not to turn over evidence that they have about this vicious assault on american democracy. in america, when you are subpoenaed to testify in court or in congress, you show up, period. you can invoke your fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination to specific questions if you think you committed a crime. you can claim executive privilege to specific questions if you think you're president of the united states. but you cannot blow off a subpoena in america. you cannot sit on your couch and defy the people's representatives in congress. so we must enforce the rule of law here, my colleagues. we must do it. if you act deliberately with sneering, cavalier contempt for the american people and their representatives, we will hold you in contempt. we will get to the truth of the violent assault on america. i yield back. >> the gentleman from indiana. >> speaker, you don't have to look far to realize the absurdity of what's happening in congress today. in fact, "politico" just reported moments ago that the capitol police whistleblower is telling us, telling "politico" that they have not been contacted by the january 6 select committee. the capitol police whistleblower. he said that the united states capitol police deserve more scrutiny than it's gotten so far and that he would talk to investigators if they reach out to him, and the select committee has not reached out to the capitol police whistleblower. yet here we are today focused on holding a private citizen in contempt, an unprecedented action by this sham committee and their sham investigation. with that i yield to my colleague from florida, mr. gates. two minutes. >> the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> why are we here on the floor of the house of representatives listening to the democrats and socialists and their republican puppets, reviewing steve bannon's podcast? i can't imagine that would be the case if they actually had a bill, a reconciliation deal, legislation to help the american people. we're not here because of democracy. save me the alligator tears on that. these are the folks who assaulted our democracy for two years under the spector of the russia hoax. it's sure not about violence because they didn't seem to give a damn when our country was being engulfed in flames during the riots in the summer of 2020. it's not about congressional process. if it was about congressional process, democrats would be doing what they have done in other cases. they would go to court. but the reason they haven't gone to court, like they did for trump's taxes, in the deutsche bank subpoenas, in the mazers matter, they did not appeal in court. the courts realized their subpoenas were overly broad. so instead of using the real process, here we are just enduring this politics. and because they can't build back better, they've just decided to build back meaner. i yield back. >> the gentleman from mississippi. >> thank you, madam speaker. just for the record, again, the gentleman from indiana referenced the whistleblower. we have not talked to the whistleblower, but we've talked to the whistleblower's lawyer. and we are doing our work. so, clearly, since he's quoting "politico," i want him to just get the record straight. madam speaker, i yield two and a half minutes to the gentlewoman from virginia, ms. luria, who served two decades in the navy and was among the first women to serve in the navy's nuclear power program. >> the gentlelady is recognized for two and a half minutes. >> thank you, madam speaker. to support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies foreign and domestic, we reaffirm that oath on january 3rd, yet only three days later in this very chamber, this body was assaulted while carrying out the peaceful transfer of power, the very hallmark of our democracy. i first took that oath when i was 17 years old and entered the naval academy. i was willing to put my life on the line to serve my country and protect the foundation of this republic, a foundation that was shaken but not broken on january 6. mr. bannon, a former naval officer like me at one point understood this oath. he took it multiple times, he served his country honorably in the navy. i don't know what happened between the time lieutenant bannon left the navy and today. what force has corrupted his understanding of this oath? mr. bannon has been given the opportunity to voluntarily provide information relative to the work of our committee, but he's not complied. truly, this is larger than mr. bannon and this is larger than this investigation, and this is larger than the tragic and horrific events of january 6. this vote is a test of that oath. to my colleagues who chose to vote against enforcing the subpoena, you're saying to all future men and women who are called before this body that they can ignore a subpoena from congress without consequence. you can make that choice today, but that will be a vote to abdicate the power of the legislative branch against which you are elected to serve. that would be a vote to undermine the government and the constitution which you took an oath to support and defend. the consequences of that vote won't be limited to this investigation and this subpoena alone. your vote will do serious, long-lasting damage to congress as an institution. and that in turn will do serious damage to our country, which we all love so dearly. we ask our young men and women in uniform to go forth every day and protect us, t