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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office hit back on Monday House Republicans demanding answers regarding security decisions before and on the day of the Capitol riot last month, saying they were trying “clearly “to deflect responsibility for the attack on Donald Trump’s Capitol. “
Ranking Member of the House Administration Committee Rodney Davis, R-Ill., Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, Ranking Member of the House Oversight Committee James Comer, R- Ky., And ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes, R-Calif., Sent a letter to Pelosi, D-Calif., On Monday, saying “many important questions” about his “responsibility for security “from the Capitol on January 6” remain unanswered “.
CHAMBER REPUBLICS DEMAND PELOSI’S RESPONSES ON SECURITY DECISIONS UP TO CAPITOL RIOT
But Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff Drew Hammill told Fox News the speaker “has and will continue to take action to ensure accountability and strengthen the security of the Capitol.”
“Two of the four members of the Republican House rankings voted to overturn the results of a fair election just hours after an insurgent right-wing mob – a crowd incited by Trump,” Hammill said. “A full 65% of Republicans in the House joined in voting to undermine our democracy. The four high-ranking members also voted against Donald Trump’s responsibility for inciting the crowd.”
Hammill added: “Obviously, the security of our Capitol and democracy are not the top priorities of these top members.”
Republicans, in their letter to Pelosi on Monday morning, posed the following question: “When then-leader Sund applied for National Guard support on January 4, why was that request denied? ? Did Sergeant-at-Arms Paul Irving get clearance or instructions from your staff on January 4 before refusing Chief Sund’s request for the National Guard? “
Davis, Jordan, Comer and Nunes pointed to claims by former US Capitol Police Chief Steve Sund that on January 4 he approached the Sergeant-at-Arms for help from the National Guard. Sund, in a letter to Pelosi last month, said Irving responded that he was concerned about “the optics” and didn’t think “the intelligence was backing it.”
“As you know, the Speaker of the House is not only the leader of the majority party, but also has enormous institutional responsibilities,” they wrote. “The speaker is responsible for all operational decisions made in the House.”
House Sergeant-at-Arms and Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Michael Stenger were removed from their posts and Chief Sund resigned after the riot.
“It is the job of the Capitol Police Council, on which these three people sat, to properly plan and prepare for the security threats facing the United States Capitol,” said Hammill. “It has been reported that House Sergeant-at-Arms Paul Irving has stated that he made no request to the House leadership for a National Guard until January 6.”
Hammill noted that the jurisdictional committees had been informed “before January 6 of the security preparedness.”
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“At a Majority Appropriations Committee briefing Jan. 5 by House Sergeant-at-Arms Paul Irving and U.S. Capitol Police Chief Sund, Chief Sund and Mr. Irving assured that the Capitol complex had full security and that there was no intelligence that aggregates would become violent on Capitol Hill when certifying electoral votes, ”explained Hammill. “We understand that Ranking Member Davis was also made aware, but took no action to address any safety concerns he may have had.”
Davis’ office, in response, told Fox News that “no one is alleging that Ranking Member Davis turned down a National Guard request before Jan.6 because he would not have the authority to do so even if he had been made aware of the request, which he was not. ”
“After the insurgency, the speaker immediately tasked General Honoré with leading an immediate security review of the U.S. Capitol complex and called for a 9/11-type commission to investigate, with legislation creating such a panel that will be presented in the coming days. Hammill said. “The USCP is also conducting an internal security review.”
Pelosi last month appointed retired General Russel Honoré to lead a security review of events on Capitol Hill amid calls from members on both sides of the aisle, in both houses of Congress, to conduct a review .
Republicans challenged Pelosi’s nomination, saying it was done “without consultation with the minority”.
But once again, Hammill fired back, calling the Republicans’ demands a “transparent and partisan attempt to blame the speaker, who was the target of assassination in the uprising fueled by Lies from Republicans in the United Nations. House, “and said that” the rank and file are trying to exonerate former Police Chief Sund, former Sergeant-at-Arms Stenger and the chief who appointed him, Mitch McConnell, of all responsibility.
“We look forward to these rank and file members asking the same questions of former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,” Hammill said.
Hammill also added that Pelosi “knows all too well the importance of security on Capitol Hill and is focused on all the issues facing the Capitol complex and the events leading up to the insurgency.”
He added: “Obviously, these members of the Republican rankings do not share this priority.”
Capitol Police came under scrutiny in the middle of the Capitol headquarters on Jan.6 during a joint session of Congress to certify the Electoral College’s results in favor of President Joe Biden.
But Pelosi said last week she would bring forward a resolution to give the Congressional Gold Medal – the highest honor Congress can bestow – to U.S. Capitol police officers and other law enforcement personnel. who protected the Capitol during the riot.
“They are martyrs of our democracy, those who lost their lives,” Pelosi said at his weekly press conference.
Five people died when a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6, including U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, 42. Two other police officers committed suicide in the week following the siege.
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“The Capitol Police Department that day is a credit to our democracy. Their acceptance of this award gives luster to this medal, ”said the Californian Democrat. “We must always remember their sacrifice and be vigilant of what I have said before, what Abraham Lincoln said: the silent artillery of time. We will never forget.”
Former President Donald Trump was impeached by the House for the second time on January 13 for inciting an insurgency on January 6. The former president was acquitted by the Senate this weekend.
Meanwhile, Republicans also claimed House agents were failing to provide the necessary documents regarding the Capitol riot.
“We could have a little more clarity on the timeline of events if President Pelosi ordered her House officers to comply with Ranking Member Davis’ requests for preservation and production of information regarding January 6,” he said. a spokesperson for Davis told Fox News. “The USCP agreed, but the SAA and CAO, which are appointed by the President, rejected our demands.”
The spokesperson added: “But anyway, President Pelosi has to answer these questions honestly: Was anyone on her team aware of Mr Sund’s request for the National Guard before January 6, was the request denied due to optics, and why did the SAA take more than an hour to approve the National Guard request amid the riots? ”
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