GOP congressman Adam Kinzinger launches scathing attack on Kevin McCarthy for LYING about Capitol riot and blames it on Trump as Republican Senator Susan Collins also throws support behind commission to probe 'insurrection'
Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger has launched a scathing attack on House leader Kevin McCarthy for 'lying' about the January 6 riots at the US Capitol.
Appearing on Fox New Sunday, Kinzinger said it was vital that Congress established a 9/11-style commission into the attack to get to the bottom of what happened.
'The American people deserve the truth,' he told host Chris Wallace.
'And my party to this point has said things like it was hugs and kisses, it was Antifa and BLM, it was anything but what it was, which was a Trump-inspired insurrection on the Capitol.'
The House passed legislation last week to form a bipartisan commission of five Republicans and five Democrats to investigate the January 6 riots, in spite of opposition from Republican leadership.
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell has said he will oppose the formation of a commission, meaning it is unlikely to pass the Senate.
Appearing on ABC's This Week, GOP Sen. Susan Collins offered a glimmer of hope that the bill could get through the Senate, saying she strongly supports the formation of the independent commission, signaling a break from party leadership.
Collins said it was vital to understand why law enforcement wasn't better prepared for the attack by an angry mob of Donald Trump supporters who stormed Congress in an effort to block it from certifying the results of the November Presidential election.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger accused House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy of lying about January 6
McCarthy initially blamed Donald Trump for inciting the riot, before reversing his position after meeting with the former President at Mar-a-Lago
Some 140 Capitol Police officers were injured when an angry mob of Donald Trump's supporters broke into the US Capitol to stop the certification of Joe Biden's victory
'I strongly support the creation of an independent commission,' Collins told ABC on Sunday morning.
'I believe there are many unanswered questions about the attacks on the Capitol on Jan. 6.'
The moderate Senator from Maine said she wanted to see minor amendments to the bill that passed the House, with equal numbers of staff from each party working on the commission and for the report to wrap up this year.
Collins was one of seven Republican senators who voted to impeach Trump for his role in the January 6 attacks.
But of that group, North Carolina Richard Burr has already come out against the commission, meaning it is unlikely to gain the 10 Republican votes it would require to pass.
Collins was optimistic it could be done.
'There's plenty of time to complete the work,' she told host George Stephanopoulos.
'And I'm optimistic that we can get past these issues based on the conversations I've had with the speaker of the House and the House majority leader.'
Meanwhile Kinzinger, one of 35 Republicans in the House to vote for the forming of an independent commission into January 6, tore into Kevin McCarthy, who initially blamed Trump for the attack before reversing his position after a meeting with the former President at Mar-a-Lago.
'What we need is a comprehensive look of what happened that led up to Jan. 6,' Kinzinger said. 'Who was talking to who? What were the lies?'
'I do think Kevin has failed to tell the truth to the Republicans and to the American people.
'And it pains me to say it. It's not like I enjoy standing up and saying this.'
Kinzinger said the Republican voters who believe the election was stolen, had been misled.
Appearing on ABC's This Week , GOP Sen. Susan Collins offered a glimmer of hope that the bill could get through the Senate, saying she strongly supports the formation of the independent commission, signaling a break from party leadership
'The people they trust have either been silent or not told them the truth,' Kinzinger said.
'That's where Kevin has failed, because he told the truth... then he went to Mar-a-Lago and said Donald Trump's the leader of the party.
'He's right ― Donald Trump is the leader of the party. But we need to tell people the truth.'
According to the Washington Post, four Republican Senators have expressed openness to voting for the commission: Collins, Mitt Romney, Bill Cassidy and Mike Crapo.
A further 11 are still considering whether to support the bill, 25 oppose and 10 are unknown.
This week, it was revealed more than 70 US Capitol police have quit since the January 6 riots.
Some 140 Capitol Police officers were injured when an angry mob of Trump's supporters stormed the US Capitol building to stop the certification the election victory of Joe Biden.
Officer Brian Sicknick, who was among hundreds of officers trying to fight off rioters without the necessary equipment or planning, died following the January 6 riot.
It was determined in April that Sicknick suffered two strokes and died of natural causes.
Officer Howard Liebengood, 51, who had been on the Capitol Police force since 2005, died by suicide less than a week after the riots.
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