WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Lawmakers tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol are issuing a sweeping records request.
The group is targeting not just federal agencies but allies of the former president.
The records request marks the panel’s first big step in their broader investigation into Jan. 6 insurrection. The group insists the request is key to unlocking key information leading up to the attack.
Colorado Rep. Jason Crow says he supports new efforts to get to the bottom of the insurrection.
“We’re going to uncover the truth,” Crow said. “Not just for historical purposes but because we have a current national security threat.”
The lawmakers are demanding all communication between the White House, allies of former President Donald Trump and congressional lawmakers leading up to the riot.
“We have to do what’s necessary to get that testimony,” Crow said.
The panel comprised of seven Democrats and two Republicans says it’s looking for communication showing people in the Trump administration who tried to subvert the law, overturn the 2020 election results or impede the peaceful transfer of power.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy says the investigation is an unnecessary distraction.
“They’re coming for members of Congress, they’re coming for everybody,” McCarthy said. “If I was the Democrats, I’d stop playing politics and I’d start focusing on the American people … we’ve got Americans stranded in Afghanistan, focus on that.”
But on Thursday, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin said McCarthy passed on his chance to participate.
“He refused to support an evenly divided bipartisan commission,” McCarthy said.
The House panel is giving each federal agency two weeks to respond.
The probe isn’t the only headache the former president must address. Seven U.S. Capitol Police officers sued Trump as well as Stop the Steal rally organizers. The group is accusing both parties of provoked the violence that followed.