House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., insisted Thursday he’s “not threatening” GOP lawmakers like Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who agree to serve on the select committee to investigate the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6.
McCarthy, who has reportedly suggested he will strip any Republicans who participate in Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s committee assignments, said it was “unprecedented” for Cheney to accept a spot on the panel.
The Republican leader did say he was “shocked” to hear that Cheney planned to serve on the committee, which he derided as a Democratic effort to “play politics” over the Capitol attack.
McCarthy refused to immediately name any members to the committee and refused to rule out punishing Cheney or others, noting that he doles out committee assignments to Republicans.
He ticked off a list of unanswered questions about the riot but refused to say how he thought the American people should get answers.
McCarthy dodged questions about whether former President Donald Trump bears “accountability” for urging his followers to “fight like hell” to overturn the results of the presidential election during a speech on the day of the attack.
A Republican boycott of the committee would mark a significant escalation in the GOP campaign to block a probe of the attack by thousands of Trump supporters that was designed to prevent Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s election victory.
The House of Representatives voted Wednesday along mostly party lines to establish the select committee to probe the Capitol attack.
The 13-member committee will be controlled by majority Democrats, although five slots are reserved for GOP members.
The House acted after GOP senators used their filibuster power to block an independent bipartisan commission similar to the much-heralded one that investigated the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Many Republicans have sought to downplay the seriousness of the attack and have shown little appetite to find out more about what Trump did or didn’t do to stop it in real time.
McCarthy himself might be called as a witness to describe under oath his discussions with Trump on Jan. 6. The president reportedly rebuffed pleas for action as the mob marauded virtually unchecked through the Capitol, hunting down lawmakers and calling for the summary execution of Vice President Mike Pence.
