Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) says he believes a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol would add “nothing to the sum total of information.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, McConnell said, “I think that a part of this recommendation by the Democrats is that they would like to continue to debate things that occurred in the past. They’d like to litigate the former president into the future.”
“We think, the American people, going forward, and in the fall of ’22, ought to focus on what this administration doing to the country. And what the clear choice is that we have made to oppose most of these initiatives,” he continued.
He added, “So, I think this is a purely political exercise. It adds nothing to the sum total of information.”
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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says calls for a January 6 commission are a “purely political exercise.”
— The Recount (@therecount) May 25, 2021
He says: “At the heart of this recommendation by the Democrats, is that they would like to continue to debate things that occurred in the past.” pic.twitter.com/B9PbqDs77k
The House voted 252-175 to create a commission to investigate the riot and the reasons why supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol.
It now heads to the Senate where its fate is unclear.
Democrats would need 10 Republicans to vote in favor of the legislation to create the commission. But so far, just two Republican senators have publicly said they would support the bill.
McConnell has also voiced his opposition to the commission. During a speech on the Senate floor, McConnell said, “After careful consideration, I’ve made the decision to oppose the House Democrats’ slanted and unbalanced proposal for another commission to study the events of January the 6th.”