'An egregious abuse of power': Kevin McCarthy slams Pelosi for blocking GOP's Jan. 6 committee appointments
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) says that unless House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) "reverses course" on her decision to block the appointments of Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.) to the Jan. 6 select committee, she can forget Republican cooperation.
"Speaker Nancy Pelosi has taken the unprecedented step of denying the minority party's picks for the Select Committee on January 6. This represents an egregious abuse of power and will irreparably damage this institution," said McCarthy in a statement on Wednesday. Pelosi has all along had the authority to block McCarthy's picks.
"Unless Speaker Pelosi reverses course and seats all five Republican nominees, Republicans will not be party to their sham process and will instead pursue our own investigation of the facts," asserts McCarthy.
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On Monday, McCarthy nominated Reps. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.), and Troy Nehls (R-Texas), alongside Banks and Jordan, for the select committee's five GOP slots. Following their appointments, Banks condemned the committee on Twitter, and Jordan released a video trashing Democrats for objecting to the 2016 election. Banks, Jordan, and Nehls also all voted against the certification of President Biden's 2020 victory earlier in the year.
In her motion to block the two representatives, Pelosi said "concerns about the statements made and actions taken" by Banks and Jordan justify her choice to bar them from the committee. "The unprecedented nature of January 6th demands this unprecedented decision," she added. A Pelosi spokesman confirmed she will not be changing her mind, per The Hill.
Read McCarthy's full statement below.
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