NewsNational Politics

Actions

Pelosi appoints Rep. Liz Cheney to House committee that will investigate Jan. 6 Capitol riot

Rep. Liz Cheney
Posted at 8:07 AM, Jul 01, 2021
and last updated 2021-07-01 13:12:33-04

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday said she was appointing Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, to serve on the select committee that will investigate the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, according to USA Today and the Associated Press.

Cheney will be the only Republican serving on the committee. Other members include Reps. Zoe Lofgren, Adam Schiff, Pete Aguilar, Stephanie Murphy, Jamie Raskin and Elaine Luria.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Mississippi, will serve as the chairman of the committee.

Pelosi announced she was commissioning the Democrat-backed report earlier this week. The move comes several weeks after Republicans in the Senate blocked an effort to establish a bipartisan committee to investigate the riot, similar to how Congress handled an investigation into the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Cheney's comes months after the House Republican caucus removed the Wyoming representative from her leadership position earlier this year. She had previously served as the chair of the House Republican conference.

Cheney has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump and his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

In a statement released Thursday, Cheney said she was "honored" to serve on the committee.

"What happened on January 6th can never happen again. Those who are responsible for the attack need to be held accountable and this select committee will fulfill that responsibility in a professional, expeditious, and non-partisan manner," she said. "Our oath to the Constitution, our commitment to the rule of law, and the preservation of the peaceful transfer of power must always be above partisan politics."