Republicans on Jan. 6 select committee will reportedly try to blame Nancy Pelosi for the Capitol riot

(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

published 2 July 2021

As the House select committee to investigate the Capitol riot takes shape, Republicans are preparing a strategy that mostly takes aim at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), reports CNN.

According to GOP sources, Republicans will try to "make the case [Pelosi] should have done more to secure the Capitol" and "attempt to shift the blame away from [former President Donald Trump] and onto the speaker," writes CNN.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Pelosi veto aside, McCarthy may have a tough time nominating the right Republicans to execute the GOP's blame-shifting strategy. Almost all of the minority leader's potential picks, as reported by Punchbowl News, voted against certifying Biden's 2020 election win. But as The Washington Post's Greg Sargent notes, "There is no way to appoint these Republicans without highlighting the GOP's own culpability in creating the conditions leading to [Jan. 6's] horrors." For example, CNN reports, panel picks like Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) "could also be a valuable witness for Democrats trying to learn more about Trump's actions." But simultaneously, McCarthy would also be ill-advised to pick Republicans who might treat the proceedings seriously, says Sargent.

Explore More

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox