'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.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
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.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
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.
-
Japan's surname conundrum
Under the Radar Law requiring couples to share one surname hinders women in the workplace and lowers birth rate, campaigners claim
-
How successful would Elon Musk's third party be?
Today's Big Question Musk has vowed to start a third party after falling out with Trump
-
Music reviews: Bruce Springsteen and Benson Boone
Feature "Tracks II: The Lost Albums" and "American Heart"
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policies
Speed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities
-
Obama, Bush and Bono eulogize USAID on final day
Speed Read The US Agency for International Development, a humanitarian organization, has been gutted by the Trump administration
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
Senate advances GOP bill that costs more, cuts more
Speed Read The bill would make giant cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, leaving 11.8 million fewer people with health coverage
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible