Pelosi targeting GOP's Adam Kinzinger for spot on Jan. 6 committee

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Sunday's edition of ABC News' This Week told George Stephanopoulos that she plans to speak with Republican lawmakers, including Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), in the hopes of adding them to the Jan. 6 select committee after she vetoed two of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy's recommendations — Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.) — because, in Pelosi's words, they would "jeopardize the integrity of the election."
Kinzinger has developed a reputation as a harsh critic of former President Donald Trump this past year, so it's possible McCarthy and others in the GOP will take his potential inclusion on the committee as a sign that Pelosi is trying to create an unbalanced panel, especially because he'd be teaming up with Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), who isn't too popular with her fellow Republicans these days.
But The Bulwark's Amanda Carpenter argued labeling Kinzinger and Cheney as "anti-Trump Republicans" is shortsighted, regardless of whether the moniker is being cast by someone on the left or the right. Aside from the fact that both lawmakers voted for Trump in 2020, Carpenter believes "it plays into Trump's false narrative that people are ... 'out to get' Trump rather than justifiably [hold] people accountable."
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Their stance on Jan. 6 is "about principles. Not people," Carpenter tweeted. Bill Kristol agreed, writing that Kinzinger and Cheney are "pro-truth, pro-accountability, pro-democracy Republicans" who "won't whitewash January 6."
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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