(HorizonPost.com) – It was a dramatic week on the political stage. As Democrats and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continue to push the idea that January 6 was an attempt at overt insurrection, she’s experiencing significant pushback from the GOP. In fact, disagreements between the two sides resulted in an angry eruption in the House on January 21.
Contentious Committee Picks Raise Tempers
This most recent drama originally started when Pelosi announced her plan to investigate the events of January 6 back in June. At the time, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) shared concerns over whether the Speaker would hyper-politicize the issue, rather than searching for the truth or focusing on the facts.
Those fears seemingly came true last Wednesday when Pelosi rejected two of McCarthy’s picks for her January 6 committee — namely, Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Jim Banks (R-IN). The Speaker claims involving either would threaten the integrity of the investigation.
McCarthy fired back at Pelosi’s announcement, accusing her of playing partisan games in an effort to further a tainted agenda. After calling an emergency meeting with all five of his original picks — three of whom the Speaker did approve — he came back with an ultimatum:
“Unless Speaker Pelosi reverses course, and seats all five Republicans,” he said, “we will not participate.”
The Minority Leader also threatened to run his own investigation, backed by other Republicans. It’s assumed this would include his own two rejected picks.
Pelosi, however, would not be swayed from her position. She refused to change her mind, citing the same concerns about integrity. Reports now say that McCarthy responded by officially pulling the men from the project, calling it an “egregious use of power” without “legitimacy and credibility.”
What’s the Issue?
Pelosi’s issue with Banks and Jordan is simple: neither of the men believes the former president had anything to do with the events of Jan 6. In fact, both have vocally and openly supported Donald Trump for some time now. This might be why the Speaker feels they shouldn’t be involved; some would consider it a conflict of interest.
But is refusing to include Republicans, or refusing to take part, really the answer? An investigation of this magnitude must have input from both sides. It’s the only way to reach a truly bipartisan conclusion, and perhaps, even the real, honest truth. Yet, both Pelosi and McCarthy both seem more intent on playing a game of one-upmanship, instead.
This isn’t the first time Republicans and Democrats have clashed over last year’s riots, and it probably won’t be the last. But while some measure of pushback between the sides can be beneficial, serving as a sort of check and balance against partisanship, too much turns the focus from the issue at hand to the ongoing war between the sides.
Copyright 2021, HorizonPost.com
