Said Congressman Adam Kinzinger, quoted in "Shunned by G.O.P., Cheney and Kinzinger Seek Answers on Jan. 6 Riot/They have been isolated and ostracized by their party for accepting Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s offer to sit on the special committee investigating the Capitol assault" (NYT).
McCarthy called Kinzinger and Liz Cheney "Pelosi Republicans."
They've accepted a role on the committee. Now, Kinzinger and Cheney need to step up and distinguish themselves. It's fine that McCarthy has laid down his insult. It's a default interpretation that represents what many of us believe, that the committee will not seek the truth but do the political work of the Democrats. I'm sure Kinzinger and Cheney would love us to trust them and to regard them as truth-bringers. But I want a fire lit under them. They'll need to rebut the presumption that they're "Pelosi Republicans."
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14 comments:
Amadeus 48 writes:
"Three cheers for your call to light a fire under Kinzinger and Cheney. Yet, I doubt that this wet duo will do anything but denounce Trump and give cover to Pelosi.
"First, is this commission a stunt or a necessary inquiry? If the Wet Set chases down all the leads, so be it, and I look forward to their pursuit of the Speaker’s lack of concern about preventive security, their searching concern about the role of the FBI and other organs of state security in all this, and the necessity of keeping 500 trespassers locked up in solutary for months on end. To state my goals is to prove how unrealistic they are. The Wet Set don’t roll that way, do they? They are there to sink Donald Trump. They are raking in the dollars from Democrats who see them as the future of a neutered and tame GOP.
"Second, there are plenty of venues to investigate Jan 6, so this special commission must be really special. The people that sat on Hunter’s laptop are ready to shine a light on one riot in a season of riots—the one riot that reflects badly on Trump and his supporters after billions in property were destroyed and tens of lives were lost in memorials to the death of George Floyd. Will the Wet Set demand a full review of the death of the unarmed trespasser Ashli Babbitt? I can’t see it. That is not why they are there, and they have shown no interest in such matters.
"So, while I personally believe that Trump’s rally on Jan 6 was a foolish act that could never have had a positive outcome, that Trump threw away the Georgia Senate races, and that he will continue to wreak havoc on the GOP’s hopes of reigning in the Democrats, I doubt that the wet duo will do anything but give Pelosi cover, a revolting prospect indeed."
@Amadeus 48
All that may be true. My point is simply that they deserve the presumption against them and they must work from there and prove themselves. I don't expect them to: That's what it *means* to have a presumption against them!
I do think they may be there to do more than just go along with Pelosi. I think they'd like to advance some new/old version of the GOP party. That gives them some incentive to step up and distinguish themselves in the search for the truth. The truth can be a means to the political end that motivates them.
Bob Boyd writes:
"No one is pretending Jan. 6 never happened. Exactly the opposite. The guy is lying about it already and the committee hasn't even started yet. What does that tell you? If calling Jan. 6 worse than 9/11 and gearing up for a domestic war on terror that is the equivalent of the overseas WOT that followed 9/11 is pretending it never happened, what on earth does Kinzinger think should be done?"
MJB Wolf writes:
"Using “we” in his weaselly statement is despicable. Not one Republican has asserted 1/6 “didn’t happen” and if “we” Kinzinger has been doing so unbeknownst to me then he wouldn’t be picked by Pelosi. Her direct involvement by denying her Capitol Police the assets they requested and the Guard troops they requested then firing the chief the day after warrant a lot more investigation. I have no faith in Adam or Lynn."
I'll add:
Yes, I'd like to see a good set of questions we'd like to see answered. I want to know how much the FBI know about the plan to breach the Capitol, the extent to which the FBI may have been involved, why there wasn't better defense of the Capitol (if the plan was known), and what Trump knew about the plan. What I don't want more of is assertions about Trump based on the text and timing of his speech. That's what we already know.
Joe writes:
"They can start by asking why Nancy denied repeated requests for extra security, why all of the video from that day hasn't been released, and what was the role of the FBI in infiltrating various groups now blamed for the riot. Other than that, they're just the other side of the Trump coin."
Bruce writes:
"I think that we have just seen the invention of a new meme: “Pelosi Republican”. Much better than RINO (Republican In Name Only).
"Pelosi has become the partisan symbol, for the Republicans, of everything that is wrong with society in general, and Democrats in particular. She appears interested in two things: money and power. She and her husband no longer even seem to pretend to hide their monetizing her speakership, as he now appears to be openly engaging in insider trading based on information gained through her office. There was flaunting expensive ice cream from her $24,000 subzero freezer, getting her hair done, unmasked, in the midst of the lockdown last summer, etc. HR 1 this Congress seeks to lock in Dem cheating in elections (and, thus, her own power). She has rammed over $4 Trillion in highly partisan pork barrel spending through her chamber on the thinnest of margins.
"And now her highly partisan 1/6 Investigation, staffed by her most loyal henchmen, like Adam Schiff, who appears to have instigated and orchestrated their impeachment of Trump, while routinely disclosing classified materials to the press. It’s only apparent purpose is to embarrass Republicans, as the evidence mounts that her party, indeed, stole the 2020 election."
Brian writes:
So, to be a republican on Nancy's committee; you must have No Chance of reelection?
Kinzinger's district will no longer exist after the redistricting*. He has been trying to be a democrat; but that's not going to work, on account of because the democrats will vote for a Real democrat; and the republicans from his district are being split up into two democrat districts. His only hope for a job, will be with MSNBC; and i don't see that working either.
But; at least he no longer has to pretend to be a republican
redistricting* Illinois will be losing One congressional seat; which means that they will be losing TWO republican congressmen. See how it works?
Gerrymandering (BAD!!) is when democrats lose seats
redistricting (GOOD!!) is when democrats Gain seats
Douglas writes:
"Salon has an article stating clearly what the purpose of the House select committee is, an opportunity to “tar and feather not only Donald Trump but the entire Republican Party.”
https://www.salon.com/2021/07/27/strategy-for-the-jan-6-committee-shove-it-down-the-republicans-throats/. The author doesn’t have anything nice to say about Liz Cheney, either. "
Pete writes:
"I’m still waiting for the answer to the question I had at the beginning- where were the ornamentally disguised armored doors and shutters that could have been shut to keep everyone out? Is it that easy to break into important government buildings?"
Assistant Village Idiot writes:
"I think we should all remember that the Democrats have never called anyone childish names. Donald Trump was the first American politician to do that. And I can't imagine a more vile, just-past-the-censors insult than "Pelosi Republicans." I fear for my country that we have come to such a pass.
"BTW, isn't "childish insult" something of a childish insult in the context?"
I'll say:
"Childish insult" fits with the prideful announcement that one is the "adult in the room." In my opinion, that's a pretty minimal distinction.
Mike of Snoqualmie writes:
"To paraphrase from the Watergate era “What did Nancy Pelosi know and when did she know it?” How much coordination was there between Nancy and the FBI on the organized break in of the Capitol? We know that the FBI had about 20 informants in the rioter-groups. Did these “sources” also help plan and lead the break in like they did in the Gretchen Witmer kidnap plan?
"Nancy and the Democrats were condoning if not promoting the George Floyd riots all last summer. They never envisioned that they would be the focus of a riot with 11/3/2020 election as the justification. Antifa and BLM were prime movers in those riots, just as they were in the 1/6 riot. There’s video of antifa – people wearing black outfits with black backpacks - breaking into the Capitol and a BLM activists directing activity in the Capitol.
"The 1/6 riot panel will never dig into these issues. They will blame it all on Trump and Republicans instead of holding Nancy Pelosi’s responsible for her malfeasance in protecting the Capitol.”
Amadeus 48 writes:
"Hi Althouse—any information about the FBI’s infiltration will be blocked by “sources and methods” considerations. Will Cheney and Kinzinger make a fuss about that? They are national security Republicans. I think not. They protect the deep state. They don’t attack it. They’ll be giving Wray tongue baths."
Yukon Cornelius writes:
"One of the maxims of war is not to fight on ground of your opponent’s choosing. Kevin McCarthy should just stop with the name-calling. Nancy Pelosi has prepared the battlespace, and McCarthy’s best move is not to play.
"Instead, a far better strategic move would be to fight fire with fire. He should form his own Commission to investigate the riots of last summer in which federal officers and buildings were attacked. Subpoena mayors to explain why they did little to stop the riots. Invite members of the business community to testify to the harm they’ve suffered. With a bit of effort, this could generate enough drama and compelling personal stories to overcome the mainstream media’s willful blindness about the riots of last summer. At the least, McCarthy would in the end have a report that could be compared to Pelosi’s report -- and put the lie to the riots of January 6th being the worst in the history of the nation."
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