As the House of Representatives moves forward to impanel a special committee to investigate the events of January 6, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has rejected Republican picks for the committee whose opinions fall outside her unilaterally-chosen boundaries. In response, House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy announced Wednesday that he has pulled all five of his nominees to the committee from consideration and will launch his own investigation.
Democrats and the liberal media — who seem to act as little more than the propaganda arm of the Democrat party — have described the events of January 6 as an “insurrection” that “threatened democracy.” The current resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue famously called it “the worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War.” So happy were Biden’s speech writers with their turn of phrase that they borrowed from it to describe voter integrity bills aimed at minimizing or eliminating voter fraud. So, given that the party in control has already determined its position, the likelihood of any actual investigation taking place is about the same as that of Hell freezing over.
Even the name of the committee seems to indicate a decided bias: It is officially known as the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.
McCarthy had nominated Representatives Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.), and Troy Nehls (R-Texas) to serve on the bipartisan committee. On Wednesday, Pelosi made it clear that neither Jordan nor Banks would be allowed to serve on the committee. In her statement, Pelosi said, “With respect for the integrity of the investigation, with an insistence on the truth and with concern about statements made and actions taken by these Members, I must reject the recommendations of Representatives Banks and Jordan to the Select Committee.”
Pelosi was quick to acknowledge that her action in rejecting Jordan and Banks is “unprecedented.” But that’s fine, she explained, since “the unprecedented nature of January 6th demands this unprecedented decision.” And — since her party is in control — that is that. There is no real course of redress or appeal. Nancy has spoken.
Her objections to Jordan and Banks stem from their staunch support of President Trump. Both voted to challenge certifying a Biden win in the 2020 election and have been critical of the changes to election methods that led to Biden’s claim of victory.
But in her beneficence, Pelosi said she offered to let McCarthy put forth two new nominees to replace Jordan and Banks. “I have spoken with [McCarthy] this morning about the objections raised about Representatives Jim Banks and Jim Jordan and the impact their appointments may have on the integrity of the investigation,” Pelosi said.
In reply, McCarthy withdrew the other three nominees and announced that he would be holding his own investigation that would take an open look at all of the events of January 6. In that announcement, McCarthy said, “This represents an egregious abuse of power and will irreparably damage this institution,” adding that Pelosi’s unilateral barring of Jordan and Banks shows that the committee “has lost all legitimacy and credibility and shows the Speaker is more interested in playing politics than seeking the truth.” He went on to say, “Unless Speaker Pelosi reverses course and seats all five Republican nominees, Republicans will not be party to their sham process and will instead pursue our own investigation of the facts.”
He also told the assembled press at a hastily assembled press conference, “This is the people’s house — not Pelosi’s house,” and asked, “Why are you allowing a lame duck speaker to destroy this institution?”
With Democrats in control, Republicans are finding themselves either on the outside looking in or expected to rubber-stamp everything that Democrats do. Since neither Jordan nor Banks can be expected to play along with Democrat nonsense, they — of course — find themselves on the outside looking in. Given this development, it is now painfully apparent that any attempt at bipartisanship is an exercise in futility. Pelosi’s dictatorial approach to dealing with anyone on the other side of the aisle is a perfect reflection of her party’s attitude to leadership.
Perhaps a statement from Pelosi’s comrade Representative Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) makes that point best. On the nomination of Jordan and Banks, Schiff said, “Republicans rejected a commission in which there would have been equal opportunity to appoint people. When we moved to the alternate, which was a select committee, Kevin McCarthy once again chose to name people who would disrupt the proceedings,” adding, “So he’s demonstrated he’s not serious about this.”
Translation: “McCarthy’s nominees are not going to go along with a kangaroo court that was prefabricated to blame President Trump and his supporters while legitimizing the Democrat-led shift toward socialism.”
This writer does not claim to have a crystal ball, but I will predict the outcome of this committee’s “investigation.” When all is said and done, the report — which will number hundreds of pages — will be able to be summarized in three words: “Orange Man Bad!” Who can blame McCarthy or any other Republican for not wanting to take part in such a farce?
