House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that she plans to ask Rep. Adam Kinzinger, Illinois Republican and vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, to serve on the select committee that will investigate the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Mrs. Pelosi blocked two of Mr. Trump’s Republican allies, Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Jim Banks of Indiana, from joining the committee, saying their actions would undercut the committee’s work.
While she is seeking out support from the anti-Trump Mr. Kinzinger, Mrs. Pelosi told ABC News she wants the committee’s work to be perceived as non-partisan.
“Republicans will say what they will say, our select committee will seek the truth, it’s our patriotic duty to do so, and we do not come into our work worried about what the other side who has been afraid [will do],” Mrs. Pelosi said on ABC’s “This Week.” “Maybe the Republicans can’t handle the truth but we have a responsibility to seek it, to find it, and in a way that maintains the confidence of the American people.”
The committee already has Rep. Liz Cheney, Wyoming Republican and Trump opponent, in its ranks.
Mr. Kinzinger said on Twitter he “humbly accepted” Mrs. Pelosi’s invitation.
“This moment requires a serious, clear-eyed, non-partisan approach,” Mr. Kinzinger said in a Sunday statement. “We are duty-bound to conduct a full investigation on the worst attack on the Capitol since 1814 and to make sure it can never happen again.”
Mrs. Pelosi said Mr. Kinzinger and other Republicans have expressed interest in serving on the committee.
“The two [Republicans] that I would not appoint are people who would jeopardize the integrity of the investigation and there’s no way I would tolerate their antics as we seek the truth,” Mrs. Pelosi said of Mr. Jordan and Mr. Banks.
Mr. Banks told “Fox News Sunday” that he learned of his exclusion from the committee on Twitter and thought Mrs. Pelosi was not interested in a thorough investigation that could reflect poorly on her.
“It’s more clear than ever that Nancy Pelosi is not interested in an investigation,” Mr. Banks said on Fox. “She’s only interested in a narrative. … [W]e were prepared to ask questions that no one else has asked and demand answers as to why the Capitol was vulnerable to an attack on January 6th. Why was there a systemic breakdown of security at the Capitol on January 6th? If we’re going to investigate January 6th, why not ask those questions?”
Mrs. Pelosi told ABC she is not concerned about how her blocking Republicans from joining the committee could lead to Republicans responding in kind when they next take control of Congress.
“We will find the truth, that truth will have the confidence of the American people because it will be done patriotically and not in a partisan way,” she said.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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