WASHINGTON (Nexstar) — The congressional committee’s investigation of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol has issued more subpoenas to members of former President Donald Trump’s inner circle — and lawmakers have mixed reactions.
So far, the House committee investigating the events of Jan. 6 has issued more than 100 subpoenas and interviewed more than 500 people.
“The Republicans seem to be having a limbo contest with themselves to see how low they can go,” quipped House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif).
It’s no secret Democrats and Republicans disagree on a lot — including how to characterize the attack on the Capitol. The Republican National Committee called it “legitimate political discourse.”
“They seem to have hit rock bottom with their statement that what happened was normal political discourse,” Pelosi said.
On Capitol Hill, there’s disagreement even among top republicans.
“The word insurrection is political propaganda it’s happily used by Democrats and the corporate media,” said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called Jan. 6 a “violent insurrection” aimed at stopping the democratic process.
“It was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election,” McConnell said.
Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio says what happened on Jan. 6 was a riot and says it’s fine for Republicans to have differing views.
According to Rubio, the real problem is the scope of the committee’s investigation.
The committee has issued more than 100 subpoenas, including to Trump adviser Peter Navarro.
“It is also targeting people like members of the RNC, like an older lady whose husband just died she happened to sign on as an alternate elector,” Rubio said.
The panel is also investigating whether Rudy Giuliani and other members of Trump’s circle led an effort to have fake electors overturn the election results.
“You don’t have to agree with why she signed one or her legal theories but she wasn’t even in Washington on Jan. 6,” he said.
So far, the committee’s investigation has happened behind closed doors, but in the coming weeks, it’s expected the investigation will become more public and include public hearings.
