President Trump’s Former Defense Secretary Blames Him For Capitol Riot

Posted on March 12, 2021 by John Hanson

On Thursday, former acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller accused his former boss, President Donald Trump, of helping cause the January 6 riot at the Capitol with his speech earlier that day.

Miller’s remarks came during an interview on VICE on Showtime about one month after Trump was acquitted by the Senate on an incitement charge.

Watch the interview below.

Trump’s Defense Secretary Blames Him For Violence

VICE News’ Seb Walker asked Miller, “Did you listen to the president’s speech in the morning? What did you make of it what you heard the kinds of things he was saying?”

Miller replied, “Concerning.”

Walker continued his line of questioning, “When you heard him say, ‘We’re gonna walk down Pennsylvania Avenue,’ ‘take our country back,’ that is what was concerning to you?”

Miller responded, “Sure, yeah. But by the same token, there had been a lot of rhetoric spewed over the previous bunch of years.”

Read: Former President Donald Trump's January 6 speech https://t.co/oem0Pi4eVY pic.twitter.com/RLTwmyFvyc

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) February 9, 2021

Walker continued, not letting up.

“But on this day, more than any other, when the vote is being certified in Congress, that must of set alarms bells off ringing in your head,” Walker queried.

Miller said, “Yes.”

Then Walker asked his question, point blank.

“Do you think the president was responsible for what happened on the 6th?” Walked pressed.

Miller said he did not think the violence would have unfolded if not for the president’s speech.

“I don’t know, but it seems cause and effect,” Miller said. “Yeah.”

NEW: Trump's acting defense secretary Christopher Miller told VICE, that rioters WOULDN'T have attacked the Capitol without Trump's speech.https://t.co/hGHbU9SKyX

— Bill Maxwell (@Bill_Maxwell_) March 11, 2021

Miller: Violence Wouldn’t Have Happened Without Trump’s Speech

Miller added, “Would anybody have marched on the Capitol, and overrun the Capitol, without the president’s speech? I think it’s pretty much definitive that wouldn’t have happened.”

As to whether or not he believes Trump was actually encouraging the crowd that day to riot, Miller said, “So yes, the question is, did he know he was enraging the crowd to do that? I don’t know.”

Many have speculated that the president telling the crowd to march down streets and be “strong” contributed to what unfolded.

However, Trump explicitly told the crowd that day to “peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”

Former President Trump was acquitted of the charge “incitement of insurrection” in relation to the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol on February 13.

Watch the interview with Miller here:

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Trump Pledges That He Will Campaign Against Lisa Murkowski In 2022

Posted on March 7, 2021 by LifeZette

Former President Donald Trump spoke out on Saturday to vow that he will campaign against Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) when she is up for re-election in 2022.

Trump Pledges To Campaign Against Murkowski

“I will not be endorsing, under any circumstances, the failed candidate from the great State of Alaska, Lisa Murkowski,” Trump said in a statement obtained by Politico.

“She represents her state badly and her country even worse,” he added. “I do not know where other people will be next year, but I know where I will be — in Alaska campaigning against a disloyal and very bad Senator.”

“Her vote to advance radical left Democrat Deb Haaland for Secretary of the Interior is yet another example of Murkowski not standing up for Alaska,” Trump continued, referring to the fact that Murkowski voted to confirm Joe Biden’s Interior Secretary nominee.

Murkowski was one of the seven Republican senators who voted to impeach Trump in his second impeachment trial last month.

John Barrasso Stands By Murkowski

After Trump pledged to campaign against Murkowski, Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) spoke out to support her, according to Newsweek.

“In terms of Alaska, I want to always make sure we nominate somebody who can win in November,” Barrasso said.

“Lisa Murkowski knows Alaska better than anybody. And she’s an incredible fighter for American energy,” he added. “She hasn’t made an announcement of if she’s even going to run again. If she does, I’m going to support her.”

WATCH: @SenJohnBarrasso says he supports the reelection of Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Rep. Liz Cheney despite former Pres. Trump’s opposition. #MTP

Barrasso: “With regard to Liz Cheney … I support her, I disagree completely with her on the issue impeachment.” pic.twitter.com/CKUF5k8XSg

— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) March 7, 2021

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell also said that he will “absolutely” support Murkowski, despite what Trump had to say.

Murkowski Turns On Trump

Murkowski was quick to turn on Trump after the Capitol riots back in January.

“On the day of the riots, President Trump’s words incited violence, which led to the injury and deaths of Americans — including a Capitol Police officer — the desecration of the Capitol, and briefly interfered with the government’s ability to ensure a peaceful transfer of power,” Murkowski said at the time.

“Such unlawful actions cannot go without consequence and the House has responded swiftly, and I believe, appropriately, with impeachment,” she added.

This piece was written by James Samson on March 7, 2021. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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Eric Swalwell files second major lawsuit against Trump, allies for inciting deadly Capitol siege

Posted on March 5, 2021 by Kerry Eleveld

Rep. Eric Swalwell filed a new lawsuit Friday in DC's federal District Court against Donald Trump and his closest allies for inspiring the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol that claimed five lives and injured more than 100 police officers. The second federal suit of its kind, it accuses Trump, Don Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and GOP Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama of violating federal civil rights and anti-terrorism laws by inciting the riot, aiding the rioters, and inflicting lasting emotional harms on members of Congress, according to CNN.

Last month, Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi filed a lawsuit against Trump, Giuliani, and the right-wing extremist groups the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys. Both lawsuits cite violations of a Reconstruction-era law designed to insulate Black Americans from intimidation by white supremacists.

Swalwell, who was in the House chamber on Jan. 6 and later served as an impeachment manager, charges that the defendants incited the Capitol attack through their repeated claims that the election was stolen, their urging of supporters to attend the rally, and their specific encouragement of rally attendees to march to the Capitol and commit violence.

"Trump directly incited the violence at the Capitol that followed and then watched approvingly as the building was overrun," the lawsuit said. "The horrific events of January 6 were a direct and foreseeable consequence of the Defendants' unlawful actions. As such, the Defendants are responsible for the injury and destruction that followed."

Trump told rally attendees they must "show strength" and "fight like hell" and then directed them to "walk down Pennsylvania Avenue," while falsely telling his supporters that he would march with them to the Capitol.

Brooks told rally goers, "Today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass."

Giuliani famously declared, "Let's have trial by combat!"—a reference to settling disputes through a personal battle between two opposing sides.

Naturally, Don Jr. offered rally goers the most dismal slogan of them all, but also literally threatened anyone who failed to act. "You can be a hero, or you can be a zero," he said at the rally. "If you're gonna be the zero, and not the hero, we're coming for you, and we're gonna have a good time doing it." Nice touch.

The lawsuit alleges, "The Defendants, in short, convinced the mob that something was occurring that—if actually true—might indeed justify violence, and then sent that mob to the Capitol with violence-laced calls for immediate action."

The defendants are all named in their personal capacities, forcing them to hire private attorneys and depriving them of hiding behind their public offices. As CNN notes, if either lawsuit proceeds, Trump and his allies would have to go through the discovery process and be subject to depositions—all of which could turn up fresh evidence about their personal involvement in the event.

Report: National Guard Members Sickened After Being Served Undercooked Food While Guarding Capitol

Posted on March 3, 2021 by Rusty Weiss

Fifty Michigan National Guard troops have complained of “gastrointestinal” issues after being served undercooked meals and food contaminated with metal shavings, Fox News reports.

The tainted food complaints began in mid-February, were initially resolved, and resurfaced this past weekend.

In a letter to the National Guard, the entire Michigan delegation in the House reported that “contracted meals” were being used “to support the entire federal response stationed at the Capitol.”

“However, it is clear that these contracted meals are poorly prepared, oftentimes inedible, and highly inadequate to support our soldiers,” the letter states, urging them to switch contractors.

It goes on to describe as “completely unacceptable” the fact that “men and women serving in Washington D.C. are being hospitalized due to the food they are being provided.”

A spokesman for the National Guard indicated that 50 members had been treated for “gastrointestinal complaints,” but none were hospitalized.

The Detroit News reveals that “service members, who often stand outdoors for shifts of up to 12 hours, are increasingly spending their own money to eat because they don’t trust the food from the contractor.”

DEVELOPING: An unknown number of National Guard Troops working the US Capitol have been hospitalized after eating contaminated food. Metal shavings, feathers & undercooked meat was found in meals contracted through the Pentagon – WXYZ pic.twitter.com/Ym4vi0o8eN

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) March 3, 2021

Contaminated Food Is Just One More Way National Guard Troops Have Been Mistreated

National Guard troops receiving contaminated food comes just two months after they were hauled into the Capitol during President Biden’s inauguration, only to later be banished to a parking garage.

One Guardsman at the time accused lawmakers of using them as a prop, though the order came from the Capitol Police themselves.

“Yesterday dozens of senators and congressmen walked down our lines taking photos, shaking our hands and thanking us for our service,” he said.

“Within 24 hours, they had no further use for us and banished us to the corner of a parking garage,” the Guardsman added. “We feel incredibly betrayed.”

Here’s a video from the parking garage where 5,000 members of the National Guard who were guarding the Capitol are being forced to stay. pic.twitter.com/bREUxt1tRi

— Benny (@bennyjohnson) January 22, 2021

Lt. Col. Robert Carver, a spokesman for the joint task force that commands the Capitol security mission, told the Detroit News that the contaminated food problem is not “systemic.”

“So far we haven’t found substantial issues that we’ve recorded,” he told a reporter. “The contractors know that we are watching, and they have been cooperative and responsive to our concerns.”

One soldier last month wrote to a lawmaker, however, indicating “multiple soldiers have been getting sick and vomiting after eating, and most of the food is being thrown away,”

“Morale is very bad,” the message reads. “Many have served overseas and cannot believe the quality of food they are being fed here.”

First the Democrats put them in the cold garage to sleep

Now they have metal shavings and undercooked food?

Our heroes in the National Guard deserve better! https://t.co/ZlclBlDwZv

— Rep. Madison Cawthorn (@RepCawthorn) March 2, 2021

Leaving in Mid-March

A spokesperson for the Pentagon believes the National Guard troops will be ending their mission in the nation’s capital sometime in mid-March.

“There’s no incidents to report,” the spokesperson told Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto. “Things are safe and secure right now.”

7,000 troops have remained at the Capitol during the Senate impeachment hearings, due to concerns about “civil unrest,” down from the 25,000 sent there during Biden’s inauguration.

New this morning: House GOP received a security briefing from Maj. Gen. Walker, the Commanding General of the DC National Guard.

They discussed Jan. 6 & security measures in the Capitol going forward. Members told there’s been no request to have troops in Capitol past mid-March

— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) February 24, 2021

Democrats have been actively smearing the military and veterans ever since the riot at the Capitol on January 6th.

President Biden last month suggested that former military and former police officers are helping to fuel the growth of white supremacy and white supremacist groups in America.

“You see what’s happening — and the studies that are beginning to be done … about the impact of former military, former police officers, on the growth of white supremacy in some of these groups,” Biden said during a town hall.

Leading up to Biden’s inaugural address, National Guard troops were vetted for ‘extremist’ views despite there being “no intelligence indicating an insider threat” to the event.

And last month, Democrat lawmakers reportedly sought to add language into this year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would keep alleged white supremacists from joining the military.

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Liz Cheney Says Republicans Need To Make It Clear That ‘We Aren’t The Party Of White Supremacy’

Posted on February 25, 2021 by LifeZette

Representative Liz Cheney (R- WY), who is one of the Republicans that voted to impeach former President Donald Trump during his last impeachment trial, spoke out at a Reagan Institute event on Tuesday to say that the Republican party needs to “make clear that we aren’t the party of white supremacy” in the wake of last month’s Capitol riots.

Cheney Condemns Capitol Riots

“Certainly the potential of a 9/11-style commission, I think that is very important,” Cheney said. “I think there are many aspects of what happened on the 6th and in the days and weeks and months leading up to it that have to be investigated.”

“It’s very important, especially for us as Republicans, to make clear that we aren’t the party of white supremacy,” she added. “You certainly saw anti-Semitism. You saw the symbols of Holocaust denial, for example, at the Capitol that day.”

“You saw a Confederate flag being carried through the Rotunda,” Cheney continued. “And I think we as Republicans, in particular, have a duty and an obligation to stand against that, to stand against insurrection.”

Cheney Doubles Down

Cheney made it clear that she supports a 9/11-style commission to look into this riot, saying that its mandate should be to take a “clear eyed look” into Trump’s and his allies’ allegations of voter fraud and a “stolen” election.

“The president and many around him pushed this idea that the election had been stolen. And that is a dangerous claim. It wasn’t true,” she said. “There were over 60 court cases where judges, including judges appointed by President Trump and other Republican presidents, looked at the evidence in many cases and said there is not widespread fraud.”

Not stopping there, Cheney added that the commission should look into media organizations that pushed or continue to push the narrative of a fraudulent election, saying they are “contributing to a very dangerous set of circumstances.”

Cheney concluded by saying that this commission should follow the 9/11 commission’s model and have only retired officials serving as members.

“I think there are many aspects to what happened on the sixth and in the days, weeks and months leading up to it that have to be investigated,” Cheney said.

“And I think having a commission with the formality that we saw in the 9/11 Commission, with the bipartisan participation that we saw in the 9/11 Commission, that’s very important,” she concluded.

This piece was written by James Samson on February 24, 2021. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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Kamala Harris Refuses To Give Direct Answer After Being Asked If Trump Should Face Criminal Charges

Posted on February 18, 2021 by LifeZette

Vice President Kamala Harris declined to give a direct answer on Wednesday morning when she was asked if former President Donald Trump should face criminal charges for his alleged role in the Capitol riots last month.

Kamala Harris Interviewed On ‘Today’

“The president was acquitted in the Senate trial,” said “Today” host Savannah Guthrie. “Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, though, had some harsh words, saying he didn’t get away with anything yet, and that civil and criminal liability was still a possibility. I ask you — do you think that President Trump should be criminally charged?”

“You know, right now, Savannah, I’m focused on what we need to do to get relief to American families, and that is my highest priority,” Harris replied. “It is our administration’s highest priority. It is our job. It is the job we were elected to do, and that’s my focus.”

“But you’re a former prosecutor, so I have got to ask you, is that a strong case against the president, a criminal case that Mitch McConnell had raised as a possibility?” Guthrie pressed on.

“I haven’t reviewed the case through the lens of being a prosecutor,” Harris responded, dodging the question again. “I’m reviewing the case of COVID in America through the lens of being the vice president of America.”

Harris’ Past Comments Come Back To Haunt Her

Harris found herself in some hot water during Trump’s impeachment trial when past comments that she had made came back to haunt her, as Republicans claimed that she had incited violence in the past as well by encouraging racial riots and bailing out protests.

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) went so far as to say that if Republicans take back the House, Harris could find herself being impeached, based on the precedent Democrats set with their latest effort against Trump.

“If you use this model, I don’t know how Kamala Harris doesn’t get impeached if the Republicans take over the House, because she actually bailed out rioters and one of the rioters went back to the streets and broke somebody’s head open,” Graham said, according to Newsweek. “So we’ve opened Pandora’s Box here, and I’m sad for the country.”

This piece was written by James Samson on February 17, 2021. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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Democrats lean on Ku Klux Klan Act to hold Trump and Giuliani accountable for Capitol riot

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Lauren Floyd

Republican enablers may have let former President Donald Trump get away with inciting a deadly Capitol riot, but his recent impeachment acquittal isn't squelching the seemingly endless and much-deserved flood of lawsuits against Trump. The NAACP, Rep. Bennie Thompson, of Mississippi, and the civil rights legal firm Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll filed a suit against the former commander in chief Tuesday in federal court.

In the suit, the advocates allege that Trump, his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, and the hate groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers "conspired to incite" the march to the Capitol to disrupt “by the use of force, intimidation and threat,” Congress’ certification of President Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory. “The insurrection at the Capitol did not just spontaneously occur—it was the product of Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani lies about the election,” Joe Sellers, a partner at Cohen Milstein said in a news release announcing the lawsuit. “With the Senate failing to hold the President accountable, we must use the full weight of the legal system to do so. The judicial system was an essential bulwark against the President during his time in office, and its role in protecting our democracy against future extremism is more important than ever.”

Trump urged the march to the Capitol during his Save America rally on January 6, and an insurrection that left Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick dead, reportedly hit with a fire extinguisher, followed. More than a dozen other police officers were injured; three people died in medical emergencies; and one rioter was shot and killed when she attempted to breach the Capitol.

Thompson, the NAACP, and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll cited the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 in their lawsuit, which is intended to “protect against conspiracies, through violence and intimidation, that sought to prevent Members of Congress from discharging their official duties.”

The legal team stated in the suit:

“The insurrection at the Capitol was a direct, intended, and foreseeable result of the Defendants’ unlawful conspiracy. It was instigated according to a common plan that the Defendants pursued since the election held in November 2020, culminating in an assembly denominated as the “Save America” rally held at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021, during which Defendants Trump and Giuliani incited a crowd of thousands to descend upon the Capitol in order to prevent or delay through the use of force the counting of Electoral College votes. As part of this unified plan to prevent the counting of Electoral College votes, Defendants Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, through their leadership, acted in concert to spearhead the assault on the Capitol while the angry mob that Defendants Trump and Giuliani incited descended on the Capitol. The carefully orchestrated series of events that unfolded at the Save America rally and the storming of the Capitol was no accident or coincidence. It was the intended and foreseeable culmination of a carefully coordinated campaign to interfere with the legal process required to confirm the tally of votes cast in the Electoral College.”

The NAACP cited in its news release a segment of Giuliani’s remarks at the Save America rally last month. “If we’re right, a lot of them will go to jail. So let’s have trial by combat,” the unscrupulous attorney said. The NAACP also quoted the former president in its release. “So we are going to … walk down Pennsylvania Avenue… we’re … going to try and give them the kind of pride and boldness that they need to take back our country,” Trump said at the rally.

1 hour before MAGA stormed the Capitol: Trump: "We're going to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue... and we're going to the Capitol... we're going to try and give our Republicans ... the kind of pride and boldness that they need to take back our country." He specifically incited it. pic.twitter.com/ROoVictxqa
— Brent Black (@brentalfloss) January 6, 2021

NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson said in a statement that Trump needs to be held accountable both "for deliberately inciting and colluding with white supremacists to stage a coup" and for "his continuing efforts to disenfranchise African-American voters." “The insurrection was the culmination of a carefully orchestrated, months-long plan to destroy democracy, to block the results of a fair and democratic election, and to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of African-American voters who cast valid ballots,” Johnson added. “Since our founding, the NAACP has gone to the courthouse to put an end to actions that discriminate against African-American voters. We are now bringing this case to continue our work to protect our democracy and make sure nothing like what happened on January 6th ever happens again.”

Thompson called January 6 "one of the most shameful days in our country’s history," and he added that "it was instigated by the President himself." “His gleeful support of violent white supremacists led to a breach of the Capitol that put my life, and that of my colleagues, in grave danger,” the congressman said. “It is by the slimmest of luck that the outcome was not deadlier.

“While the majority of Republicans in the Senate abdicated their responsibility to hold the President accountable, we must hold him accountable for the insurrection that he so blatantly planned,” he added. “Failure to do so will only invite this type of authoritarianism for the anti-democratic forces on the far right that are so intent on destroying our country.”

Rep. Thompson is also seeking punitive damages which is A+ trolling insofar as it may force Trump to admit he’s a broke ass. pic.twitter.com/vQY3IpWn2I
— ⚓️🚢Imani Gandy 🚢⚓️ (@AngryBlackLady) February 16, 2021

Pelosi planning a 9/11-style inquiry into the Capitol siege

Posted on February 16, 2021 by Kerry Eleveld

In a letter to her colleagues Monday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi promised the formation of an independent commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and the security failures surrounding it.

In the interest of safeguarding the nation's security, Pelosi said a 9/11-type commission must be established to “investigate and report on the facts and causes relating to the Jan. 6, 2021, domestic terrorist attack upon the United States Capitol complex” as well as “the interference with the peaceful transfer of power.” Establishing such a commission will likely require legislation in the vein of how the 9/11 Commission was formed. Pelosi also said a supplemental appropriations bill would be necessary to fund increased security measures for the Capitol and congressional members in the near term.

“It is clear from his findings and from the impeachment trial that we must get to the truth of how this happened,” Pelosi wrote.

Pelosi isn't the only congressional lawmaker who wants to know what the heck happened on Jan. 6 to make the Capitol breach possible. Even the likes of Trump sycophant Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told Fox News Sunday, "We need a 9/11 Commission to find out what happened and make sure it never happens again." Of course, Graham could turn on a dime if Donald Trump is somehow implicated in the security failures—which he surely will be. The only question concerning Trump's (non)involvement in the flagging law enforcement presence is to what extent Trump helped hobble the response.

Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who ultimately voted to convict Trump of the impeachment charges, also expressed genuine interest in getting to the bottom of the breach and security failures.

“Why was there not more law enforcement, National Guard already mobilized, what was known, who knew it, and when they knew it, all that, because that builds the basis so this never happens again in the future,” Cassidy said Sunday on ABC News’ This Week.

Naturally, House Republicans have already established themselves as a part of the problem. The latest conspiracy theory of the tinfoil hat caucus appears to be that Pelosi herself kneecapped the Jan. 6 response. They ask a series of probing questions in their latest letter to Pelosi and then complain that they haven't been adequately consulted on the latest security measures being taken at the Capitol, including the installation of magnetometers at entrances to the House chamber.

Anyway, if the tinfoil hat caucus is really on to something, then Pelosi's independent commission will ultimately be an investigation of ... herself. Genius.

Pelosi Fires Back After Top Republicans Demand Answers About Capitol Security Before Riot – Deflects Blame

Posted on February 15, 2021 by LifeZette

Earlier today, we reported that top Republicans from various committees in the House had sent a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) demanding answers on some of the decisions she made about security before the Capitol riot last month.

Now, Pelosi is firing back by saying that Republicans are “clearly” trying to “deflect responsibility for the Capitol attack from Donald Trump.”

Pelosi Fires Back At Republicans

On Monday, House Administration Committee Ranking Member Rodney Davis, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jim Jordan, House Oversight Committee Ranking Member James Comer and House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes sent Pelosi a letter in which they said that they have “many important questions” about her “responsibility for the security” of the Capitol on Jan. 6 “remain unanswered.”

Drew Hammill, Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff, told Fox News in response that the speaker “has and will continue to take action to ensure accountability and enhance the security of the Capitol.”

“Two of the four House Republican Ranking Members voted to overturn the results of a fair election, just hours after the Capitol was sacked by an insurrectionist, right-wing mob – a mob incited by Trump,” Hammill said.

“A full 65 percent of House Republicans joined them in voting to undermine our democracy. All four Ranking Members also voted against holding Donald Trump accountable for inciting the mob,” he continued. “Clearly, the security of our Capitol and democracy are not the priorities of these Ranking Members.”

Republicans Lash Out At Pelosi

In their letter, the Republicans had asked, “When then-Chief Sund made a request for national guard support on January 4th, why was that request denied? Did Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving get permission or instruction from your staff on January 4th prior to denying Chief Sund’s request for the national guard?”

They went on to cite claims made by former Capitol Police Chief Steve Sund, who alleged that two days before the riot, he approached the sergeants at arms to request the assistance of the National Guard.

In a letter of his own that he sent to Pelosi last month, Sund alleged that the former Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving said he was concerned about “the optics” and didn’t feel the “intelligence supported it.”

“As you are aware, the Speaker of the House is not only the leader of the majority party, but also has enormous institutional responsibilities,” the Republicans wrote. “The Speaker is responsible for all operational decisions made within the House.”

After the riot, both the House Sergeant at Arms and the Senate Sergeant at Arms were removed from their positions, and the chief of the Capitol Police resigned.

Hammill Doubles Down

“It is the job of the Capitol Police Board, on which these three individuals sat, to properly plan and prepare for security threats facing the U.S. Capitol,” Hammill said. “It has been reported that the House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving has said that he did not present to House Leadership any request for the National Guard before January 6th.”

Hammill added that the Committees of Jurisdiction were briefed “in advance of January 6 about security preparedness.”

“During a briefing of the Appropriations Committee Majority on January 5th by the House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving and U.S. Capitol Police Chief Sund both Chief Sund and Mr. Irving provided assurances that the Capitol Complex had comprehensive security and there was no intelligence that groups would become violent at the Capitol during the certification of electoral votes,” he explained.

“It is our understanding that Ranking Member Davis was also briefed, but took no action to address any security concerns that he might have had,” he said.

“Following the insurrection, the Speaker immediately tasked General Honore with leading an immediate security review of the U.S. Capitol Complex and has called for a 9/11-style Commission to investigate, with legislation creating such a panel to be introduced in the coming days,” Hammill continued. “The USCP is also conducting an internal security review.”

Hamill concluded by saying that Pelosi “knows all too well the importance of security at the Capitol and is focused on getting to the bottom of all issues facing the Capitol Complex and the events that led up to the insurrection. Clearly, these Republican Ranking Members do not share this priority.”

This piece was written by James Samson on February 15, 2021. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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House Republicans Send Brutal Message To Pelosi – Demand Answers From Her On Security Decisions Before Capitol Riot

Posted on February 15, 2021 by LifeZette

Top Republicans from various House committees teamed up on Monday to send Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) a letter demanding answers from her on security decisions she made before the Capitol riot last month.

Republicans Send Letter To Pelosi

House Administration Committee Ranking Member Rodney Davis, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jim Jordan, House Oversight Committee Ranking Member James Comer and House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes sent a letter to Pelosi saying that “many important questions” about her “responsibility for the security” of the Capitol on Jan. 6 “remain unanswered,” according to Fox News.

The Republican lawmakers brought up the fact that former Capitol Police Chief Steve Sund claimed that two days before the riot, he went to the sergeants at arms to request the assistance of the National Guard.

Sund Sent Letter To Pelosi

In a letter to Pelosi last month, Sund alleged that the former Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving said he was concerned about “the optics” and didn’t feel the “intelligence supported it.”

They added that over the past two years, they have observed a “very heavy-handed and tightly controlled approach to House operations that has been exerted by yourself, your staff, and an army of appointed House officials.”

“When then-Chief Sund made a request for national guard support on January 4th, why was that request denied?” the Republicans continued. “Did Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving get permission or instruction from your staff on January 4th prior to denying Chief Sund’s request for the national guard?”

They went on to point out that when Sund notified the Sergeant at Arms of his request for national guard support, it “took over an hour for his request to be approved because the SAA had to run the request up the chain of command,” saying that chain “undoubtedly included” Pelosi and her “designees.”

Republicans Double Down

The Republicans then blasted Pelosi for her decision to “unilaterally” fire Irving and demand the resignation of Sund.

“These decisions were made in a partisan manner without any consultation of House Republicans and therefore raise questions about the political motivations of your decisions,” they wrote.

Though Pelosi claimed the day after the riot that she had demanded Sund’s resignation because he “hasn’t called us since this happened,” the Republicans said this claim was easily “refuted” by Sund, who “detailed two occasions that he briefed you on the situation on the Capitol campus—the first occurring at 5:36 p.m. and the second at 6:25 p.m., both on January 6th.”

Republicans Express Concerns

Later in the letter, the Republicans expressed concerns over the “obstruction and inability to procure and preserve information” from House officers when they have requested it.

“Such information is necessary to properly conduct oversight on the January 6th events,” they wrote.

“Preservation and production requests were sent to the SAA and the House Chief Administrative Officer, among other legislative agencies, requesting that such relevant information concerning the attack on the Capitol, including correspondence, video footage, audio recordings, and other records, be preserved and produced to the relevant committees,” they continued.

“In multiple cases, your appointees, acting on your behalf, have denied requests to produce this information,” they added. “The response we received was: ‘We regret to inform you that given the scope of the information requested and the concerns implicated by the nature of the request… we are unable to comply with the request at this time.’”

They argued that despite the officers’ “refusal to comply with the request,” they learned that “some of the same material we requested was provided to the House Judiciary Committee on a partisan basis.”

‘This Is Unacceptable’

“This is unacceptable. Madam Speaker, that direction could only have come from you,” the Republicans wrote.

“Lastly, your hyperbolic focus on fabricated internal security concerns has taken critical resources away from the real threat, which is from outside the U.S. Capitol,” they wrote.

“Your decision to install magnetometers around the House Chamber is yet another example of this misdirection and misappropriation of House resources, which could be better used to protect members, staff, and official visitors from real, confirmed threats,” the Republicans said.

“Tellingly, Madam Speaker, you have failed to comply with this requirement yourself,” they concluded. “End this political charade, and work with us to protect the Capitol and those who work here every day.”

Pelosi has yet to respond, and her office declined to comment when contacted.

This piece was written by James Samson on February 15, 2021. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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