Rep. Jim Jordan on Thursday said Democrats’ push for a congressional commission on Jan. 6 Capitol riot was a partisan scheme to hammer former President Trump and blunt his expected 2024 run for the White House.
The Ohio lawmaker, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, labeled the proposed commission “Impeachment 3.0.”
“This is one more chance for them to go after President Trump because … they don’t want President Trump to run in 2024,” he told Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on “Mornings with Maria.”
The Ohio Republican contended that the commission, which the House approved Wednesday but faces tough GOP opposition in the Senate, was designed by Democrats to be a hit job on Mr. Trump and a distraction from the mounting troubles surrounding President Biden.
“We went from energy independence to gas lines. We went from a secure border to chaos. We went from peace in the Middle East to rockets being fired on our ally Israel. That’s what 120 days of the Biden administration will give you,” he said “They want to talk about anything else, so why not go after President Trump again? That’s what this is all about.”
“I was in Texas last weekend and I saw, going by this one house, on the flagpole [was] the American flag, the Texas flag and then the third flag was ’Trump 2024.’ That’s what the Democrats are afraid of. They want to make this a partisan activity. It is going to have Democrat staff. We know how these things are going to work. It is just going to be one more attack on President Trump and on Republicans,” Mr. Jordan added.
SEE ALSO: Trump slams 35 House Republicans who voted for Jan. 6 commission as ‘weak’
The House impeached Mr. Trump a second time in January, charging that he incited a pro-Trump mob to storm the Capitol on Jan. 6, which temporarily halted the formal confirmation of Mr. Biden’s election victory. The Senate acquitted Mr. Trump, who was already out of office at the time.
It was the second impeachment of Mr. Trump by the Democratic House majority.
Mr. Trump has signaled his intention to run for a return to the White House in 2024.
The House on Wednesday approved the creation of an independent commission to investigate the riot, with 35 Republicans spurning party leadership and siding with the Democrats in the vote.
The bill passed 252-to-175.
The legislation heads to the Senate, where it is unlikely to get the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster in the evenly split upper chamber. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, promised the measure will receive a floor vote.
SEE ALSO: Chuck Schumer accuses GOP of shifting ‘goalposts’ on Jan 6. panel
The odds against the bill increased dramatically when Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, announced Wednesday that he would oppose the proposal.
“After careful consideration, I’ve made the decision to oppose the House Democrats’ slanted and unbalanced proposal for another commission to study the events of January the 6th,” Mr. McConnell said on the floor of the Senate.
The proposed panel would consist of five Democratic and five Republican appointees and would face a 2021 deadline to complete its work.
• Jeff Mordock and Kery Murakami contributed to this report.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.