PHOENIX —PHOENIX (AP) — The head of the Arizona House Ethics Committee is rejecting 82 complaints against a Republican lawmaker who attended the Jan. 6 rally in Washington that turned into a siege on the U.S. Capitol. Ethics Committee Chairman Rep. Becky Nutt says the complaints don't prove that Rep. Mark Finchem supported overthrowing the U.S. government. She wrote in a letter to committee members Friday that “the complaints amount to an objection to Representative Finchem's advocacy of controversial political opinions." Finchem has said he was near the Capitol on Jan. 6 but did not go inside and didn't learn the building was breached until hours later.
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Ross D. Franklin/AP
FILE - In this Nov. 9, 2015, file photo, Arizona state Rep. Mark Finchem, R-Tucson, right, speaks during a Joint Border Security Advisory Committee at the Arizona Capitol as Arizona House Speaker David Gowan, R- Sierra Vista, listens in Phoenix. Lawmakers from at least a half-dozen states attended or observed the massive demonstrations in Washington that turned into a violent assault on the U.S. Capitol. Arizona state Rep. Mark Finchem posted photos of himself attending the protest outside the Capitol, but his office said he observed from afar. Liberal groups in the state want him expelled for backing the effort to overturn the election. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
Posted at 4:49 PM, Feb 12, 2021
and last updated 2021-02-12 19:17:08-05
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