House Republicans Move Forward with Plan to Launch New Jan. 6 Subcommittee
House Republicans are advancing efforts to create a long-anticipated select subcommittee to investigate the events of January 6, 2021 more than six months after plans for the panel were first announced.
A resolution to establish the subcommittee was formally filed on Wednesday, following months of internal deliberations over the scope of its authority and investigative powers. The committee, once formed, will operate under the umbrella of the House Judiciary Committee and will be chaired by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.).
Loudermilk, who previously led Republican-led reviews into Capitol security and the work of the former Democrat-led Jan. 6 committee, has received direct backing from President Trump to push the effort forward.
Despite the latest progress, the subcommittee won’t be officially launched until after the House returns from its August recess. A vote on the resolution is expected in September. As with other select panels, the Speaker will approve all member appointments to the subcommittee.
In the previous Congress, Loudermilk’s oversight work focused on the Capitol’s security preparedness and critiqued the original Jan. 6 committee’s findings. That committee, formed in the aftermath of the Capitol breach by Trump supporters, released a series of high-profile hearings and final reports that drew national attention and partisan divisions.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) praised the new subcommittee effort, calling it a necessary next step in revisiting what he described as an incomplete and politically biased investigation by the former committee.
“House Republicans are proud of our work so far in exposing the false narratives peddled by the politically motivated January 6 Select Committee during the 117th Congress, but there is clearly more work to be done,” Johnson said in a statement.
“The resolution introduced today will establish this Select Subcommittee so we can continue our efforts to uncover the full truth that is owed to the American people. House Republicans remain intent on delivering the answers that House Democrats skipped over.”
With the panel expected to revisit topics ranging from security lapses to the conduct and decisions of the original Jan. 6 committee, the new Republican-led inquiry is likely to spark renewed debate in Washington over how the Capitol riot and its aftermath should be remembered and investigated.