Pelosi appoints Rep. Adam Kinzinger to Jan. 6 riot probe committee [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA.) has picked Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL.) to join the special commission that would probe the January 6 US Capitol riot.
• Kinzinger has ‘humbly accepted’ the appointment, noting that he would work diligently.
• House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA.) has pulled out his five GOP nominees to the commission, noting that those Republican who will participate in the probe could be stripped of their committees.

With the ongoing assembly of the House special committee that would investigate the infamous January 6 US Capitol attack, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA.) has appointed GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger (IL.), a known critic of former President Donald Trump.

Amid the Republican party’s boycott of the probe, Kinzinger said that he “humbly accepted” the appointment.

In a statement, Pelosi said that Kinzinger’s addition to the panel would bring “great patriotism to the committee’s mission: to find the facts and protect our Democracy.”

“For months, lies and conspiracy theories have been spread, threatening our self-governance,” Kinzinger said in a statement. “For months, I have said that the American people deserve transparency and truth on how and why thousands showed up to attack our democracy.”

“I will work diligently to ensure we get to the truth and hold those responsible for the attack fully accountable,” he added.

Kinzinger also joins Rep. Liz Cheney (WY.), a Republican and staunch critic of Trump as well, to the committee after being chosen by the Democratic House Speaker. Both legislators were among the 10 House GOPs who voted to impeach Trump for the second time in January following the insurrection.

House Minority Leader and GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy said last week that the Republican will not join the panel following Pelosi’s rejection of two of his nominees ━ Rep. Jim Jordan (OH.) and Jim Banks (IN.). 

Both Jordan and Banks were known as Trump-loyalists and Pelosi noted that their inclusion could taint their probe.

“With respect for the integrity of the investigation, with an insistence on the truth and with concern about statements made and actions taken by these Members, I must reject the recommendations of Representatives Banks and Jordan to the Select Committee,” The House Speaker said at the time. “The unprecedented nature of January 6th demands this unprecedented decision.”

Before his appointment, Kinzinger previously suggested that he was open to joining the committee even with warnings from McCarthy that GOPs who participated in the panel could be ousted from their committee assignments.

Last May, the House established an independent, bipartisan investigation that would probe the January 6 event but it was blocked by Senate GOPs. The new special panel was created as Pelosi noted that the original bipartisan commission was not approved.

Source: AOL.com