House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Wednesday told the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack to preserve its findings – including those that don’t make it into the panel’s final report.
Why it matters: The development is the latest indication that Republicans plan to launch an investigation into the committee’s work to counter-program the report, which is reportedly expected to focus on former President Trump's role in the violence and his efforts to overturn the election.
- It comes as Republicans are planning a battery of probes into everything from Hunter Biden to the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan when they take the majority in January.
Driving the news: In a letter to Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the chair of the select committee, McCarthy wrote, "I remind you and your staff on the Committee to preserve all records collected and transcripts of testimony taken during your investigation."
- The letter cited Washington Post reporting that the report will consist mostly of findings from a team focused on Trump and his inner circle, eschewing findings on security and intelligence failures, financing and extremism.
- "Some reports suggest that entire swaths of findings will be left out of the Committee's final report," McCarthy wrote.
- "The official Congressional Records do not belong to you or any member, but to the American people, and they are owed all of the information you gathered – not merely the information that comports with your political agenda."
What we're watching: McCarthy said Republicans, when they take the majority in January, will hold hearings on security failures at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
- That has been the focus of a "shadow committee" made up of the Republicans who McCarthy appointed, then pulled, from the select committee, Axios reported in February.
- A Jan. 6 committee spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment
