Republicans in the U.S. Senate block the committee from entering the January 6th Capitol attack

Republicans in the U.S. Senate block the committee from entering the January 6th Capitol attack

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On Friday, Senate Republicans blocked the formation of a bipartisan group to study the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol in order to show partisan loyalty to former President Donald Trump, with the aim of shifting the political focus from The violent rebellion of his Republican supporters shifted out.

Instead, the question of who is responsible for the attack is now likely to continue to be filtered out through a partisan perspective, rather than being resolved by an independent team modeled after a committee investigating the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. .

The Senate voted 54 votes to 35 votes, which was less than the 60 votes required to consider passing a bill passed by the House of Representatives. The bill would form a 10-member committee divided equally between the two parties.

One day later, the police fighting the rioters filed an appeal, and then the family of an officer was killed. When the rioters broke in, the legislators on both sides fled the parliament building.

Six Republicans voted for the Democrats to move forward. Eleven senators-9 Republicans and 2 Democrats-did not vote. This was one of the most high-profile votes of the year, and the number of absentees was unusually high. Some people said they had conflicts with arrangements.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Mitch McConnell) speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, December 15, 2020. Senate Republicans voted Friday to pass a bill to prevent the formation of a committee to study the January 6 attack on the Capitol. (Carolyn Breman/Associated Press)

This is the first successful use of Senate members during Biden’s presidency, and it has reinvigorated the idea of ??abolishing outdated procedures commonly used to stifle major legislation.

Advancing legislation to establish a committee to investigate riots requires 60 votes, rather than a simple majority in the 100-member Senate. Since the Senate is divided equally between 50 and 50, the Democrats need the support of 10 Republicans.

Although the commission bill on January 6 was passed by the House of Representatives with the support of 3,000 Republicans in the House earlier this month, Republican senators said they believed that the commission would ultimately be politically detrimental to them. Trump, who still sticks to the party, calls it a “democratic trap.”

“Trying to clear the horror of that day under the carpet”

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer (Chuck Schumer) said after a speech to his Republican colleagues that out of loyalty to Trump, they “try to wipe out the horror of the day under the carpet.”

He said that in the future it is possible to vote again to set up a bipartisan committee. He announced: “The incident on January 6 will be investigated.”

The vote symbolizes the serious mistrust between the two parties since the siege, especially between Republicans, because some in the party downplayed violence and defended the mob who supported Trump, and he wrongly insisted that the election was Stealed from him.

The attack on the Capitol on January 6. (Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

Four people died in the riots, and one police officer collapsed and died because the authorities said it was a natural cause. Two police officers committed suicide the day after the riot.

Initially, he said he was open to the committee’s idea, which would be based on the investigation of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but in recent days, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has firmly opposed it. He has stated that he believes that even though the differences among the party members are even great, the team’s investigation will still be partisan.

McConnell once said that Trump has the responsibility to provoke a mob attack on the Capitol. McConnell said of the Democrats: “They hope to continue to file lawsuits for the former president in the future.”

“We can’t pretend that nothing bad has happened”

Nonetheless, six people in McConnell’s core team objected to him, believing that an independent appearance is needed.

Pennsylvania’s seventh person, Pat Toomey, said he missed the vote due to family reasons, but will also vote to pass this legislation.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said Thursday night that she needs to learn more about what happened that day and why.

She said: “The truth is the last word, but we are responsible for it.” “We can’t pretend that nothing bad has happened, or that people have become too excited. Some bad things have happened. It is very important to arrange this. important.”

Among colleagues who opposed the committee, Merkowski said that some people were worried that “we don’t want to shake the ship.”

In this file photo on January 6, 2021, supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump zoom in on the western wall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press)

The police’s frustration responded

The Republicans’ political arguments about the violent siege—still accepted by many in the Capitol almost five months later—not only frustrated Democrats, but also frustrated those fighting the rioters.

Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fannet, who responded to the attack, said that during the meeting with Republican senators, the committee “is necessary for us as a country to get rid of the trauma we all suffered that day and become a country. Indispensable”.

Fanone once described being dragged down the steps of the Capitol by rioters, who shocked him with a stun gun and beat him.

Congressman Brian Sicknick’s partner Sandra Garza (Sandra Garza) fell and died after fighting the rioters. He said to the Republican senator: “You know they’re here today. , Stay with their family, and feel at ease due to the law enforcement actions that day.”

US Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died on Thursday, January 7, 2021, the day after responding to the riots in the Capitol. The Washington medical examiner said he died of a natural cause of stroke. (US Capitol Police/Associated Press)

“So I don’t understand why they refused to learn more about what happened that day and fully understand how to prevent this from happening. It just confuses me.”

The video of the riot showed two men spraying chemicals on Sicknick and another police officer, but Washington medical inspectors said he had a stroke and died of natural causes.

Garza attended the meeting with Sicknick’s mother Gladys Sicknick. In a statement on Wednesday, Mrs. Hicknick advised opponents of the committee to say: “Visit my son’s grave at Arlington National Cemetery, and then think there about their harmful decisions on officers who will move on.”

Dozens of other police officers were injured when the rioters passed them, broke through windows and doors and hunted down the legislator. The demonstrators built a mock gallows in front of the Capitol and demanded the death of Vice President Mike Pence, who oversaw the presidential election.

Four protesters died, including a woman. She tried to break into the House of Representatives, but the members were still inside but were shot and killed by the police.

Many Democrats have warned that if Republicans are willing to use obstruction to prevent a controversial measure, then this shows the limits of trying to compromise, especially in relation to election reform or other aspects of the Democratic agenda. On the bill.

However, for now, Democrats do not have the right to vote to change the rules. Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona are both moderate Democrats and both expressed their desire to keep the opposition.

When asked about the committee at a station in Cleveland, Biden said, “I can’t imagine anyone voting against the committee.”

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