EXCLUSIVE: Leading Republicans on various committees are demanding answers from Mayor Nancy Pelosi about security decisions taken before and on the day of the Capitol riot on January 6.
Rating member of the House Management Committee Rodney Davis, Rating member of the Justice Committee of the House Jim Jordan, Rating member of the House Supervisory Committee James Comer and Devin Nunes, Rating member of the House Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to Pelosi, California, on Monday, saying that “many questions” about his Capitol “safety responsibility” on January 6 “remain unanswered”.
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Davis, Jordan, Comer and Nunes alluded to claims by former Capitol Police Chief Steve Sund that he approached the sergeants-in-arms on January 4 to seek help from the National Guard. Sund, in a letter to Pelosi last month, said that former arms sergeant Paul Irving said he was concerned about “the optics” and did not feel that “intelligence supported him”.
“As you know, the mayor is not only the leader of the majority party, but he also has enormous institutional responsibilities,” they wrote. “The Mayor is responsible for all operational decisions made within the Chamber.”
Pelosi’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News’s request for comment.
Republicans added that for the past two years, they have observed a “very strict and tightly controlled approach to House operations, exercised by you, your team and an army of appointed House officials”.
“When then-chief Sund made a request for support from the national guard on January 4, why was that request denied?” republicans wrote. “Sergeant-at-arms Paul Irving obtained permission or instruction from his team on January 4 before denying Chief Sund’s request to the national guard?”
In their letter, Republicans also pointed out Sund’s action on January 6 to notify Sergeant at Arms of his request for support of the national guard and said that “it took more than an hour for his request to be approved because the SAA had to execute the request the chain of command, “saying the chain” undoubtedly included “Pelosi and his” designees “.
Davis, Jordan, Comer and Nunes criticized Pelosi for his decision to “unilaterally” dismiss Irving and demand Sund’s resignation.
“These decisions were made in a partisan manner, without any consultation with House Republicans, and therefore raise questions about the political motivations of their decisions,” they wrote.
Meanwhile, Republicans pointed to Pelosi’s comments made on January 7 during a news conference, in which she explained her reason for demanding Sund’s resignation, saying he “hasn’t called us since that happened”.
Republicans said that statement was “refuted” by Sund, who “detailed two occasions when he informed him of the situation on the Capitol campus – the first occurring at 17:36 and the second at 18:25, both on January 6 . “
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Sund, in a letter to Pelosi earlier this month, detailed these calls, saying that during the first call at 5:36 pm, he informed former Vice President Pence about the security posture and then stated that Pelosi joined the call, in which he “advised the two of you, that the Chambers could be safely reoccupied at 7:30 pm.”
Sund also detailed the conference call “at approximately 6:25 pm”, which he said was a conference call with congressional leadership that included Pelosi, now Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, now Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell and Congressman James Clyburn.
Following the resignations of Irving and Sund, Pelosi last month appointed retired general Russel Honoré to lead a security review of Capitol events amid calls from members on both sides of the aisle, in both chambers of Congress, to conduct a review.
“While there is broad support for conducting an independent campus security review, General Russel Honoré was appointed exclusively by you, without consulting the minority,” wrote the Republicans. “To the general’s credit, he reached out to several Republicans to report on his work so far. We hope that his review will result in beneficial recommendations that are not influenced by political motivations.”
They added, however, that “it is easy to understand why we and our Senate counterparts remain skeptical that any of their final recommendations are independent and without your influence.”
Davis, Jordan, Comer and Nunes also raised concerns about “obstruction and inability to obtain and preserve information” from House officials when they requested it.
“This information is necessary for proper oversight of the January 6 events,” they wrote. “Requests for preservation and production were sent to the SAA and the Administrative Director of the Chamber, among other legislative bodies, requesting that such relevant information about the attack on the Capitol, including correspondence, video images, audio recordings and other records, be preserved and produced for the relevant committees. “
“In several cases, his nominees, acting on his behalf, have denied requests to produce this information,” they continued. “The response we received was: ‘We are sorry to inform you that, due to the scope of the information requested and concerns arising from the nature of the request … we are unable to comply with the request at this time.'”
Republicans added that, despite “officials’ refusal to comply with the request,” they learned that “some of the same material we request was provided to the House Judiciary Committee on a party basis”.
“This is unacceptable. Madam President, that direction could only have come from you,” they wrote.
“Finally, its hyperbolic focus on fabricated internal security concerns has drawn critical resources from the real threat, which comes from outside the United States Capitol,” they wrote. “His decision to install magnetometers around the Chamber of the Chamber is yet another example of this diversion and misappropriation of Chamber resources, which could be better used to protect members, employees and official visitors from real and confirmed threats.”
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They added, “It is telling, Madam President, that you yourself have failed to meet this requirement.”
“End this political charade and work with us to protect the Capitol and those who work here every day,” they wrote.
The Republicans’ request comes as the Capitol Police are under intensified scrutiny amid the siege of the Capitol on January 6 during a joint session of Congress to certify the results of the Electoral College in favor of President Joe Biden.
But Pelosi said last week that he would present a resolution to give the Congressional Gold Medal – the highest honor that Congress can bestow – to United States Capitol officers and other law enforcement officers who protected the Capitol during the turmoil.
“They are martyrs for our democracy, those who lost their lives,” said Pelosi during his weekly news conference.
Five people died when a crowd of Trump supporters invaded the Capitol on January 6, including U.S. Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick, 42. Two other police officers died of suicide in the week after the siege.
“The service of the Capitol police force that day honors our democracy. Accepting that reward brings brilliance to this medal,” said the California Democrat. “We must always remember his sacrifice and say watchers against what I said before, about what Abraham Lincoln said: the silent artillery of time. We will never forget.”
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Pelosi said the attack on the Capitol highlighted the “extraordinary value” of the Capitol Police who “risked their lives”, including officers Howard Leibengood, Jeffrey Smith and Eugene Goodman.
“We want to honor them in the best way that we can,” said Pelosi. “We will continue to do so in addition to a medal, but in our hearts.”