AMAC Exclusive – By Claire Brighn
For nearly two years, Democrats have used the highly partisan January 6 Committee to harass former President Trump and prominent Republicans and to slander conservatives at large as “domestic terrorists,” all while deliberately ignoring the biggest questions about what really happened on January 6. With Republicans taking back control of the House in a just a few weeks, here are eight vital questions that Americans deserve to have answered.
How many undercover government agents were in the crowd on January 6?
At a House Homeland Security Committee hearing in November, U.S. Rep Clay Higgins (R-LA) asked FBI Director Christopher Wray point-blank if the bureau had undercover agents in the crowd on January 6. Wray refused to answer, saying that he can’t comment on the matter. Look for House Republicans to continue pressing this line of inquiry in hearings next year.
Could the FBI and other federal agencies have done a better job of preventing the riot?
According to The New York Times, there were at least 8 known FBI informants embedded in the Proud Boys group in the months leading up to January 6, including at least one individual with access to a top leader in the group. If, as is alleged in court filings against some members of the group, these men had plans to attack the Capitol, why did the FBI not move earlier to quash the scheme.
What was the role of Ray Epps?
Conservative media and prominent members of the House and Senate, such as Ted Cruz, have asked pointed questions about a man named Ray Epps, who was caught on tape urging protestors to enter the Capitol. Yet Epps has apparently not been charged, leading many on the right to question what the true nature of his role was that day. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), among other Republicans, has called for an explanation, and may finally get one when the GOP takes back the gavel.
Why was the U.S. Capitol complex not secure?
In a recent letter to Bennie G. Thompson, Chair of the Democrat-run January 6 Committee, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy wrote: “Although your Committee’s public hearings did not focus on why the Capitol complex was not secure on January 6, 2021, the Republican majority in the 118th Congress will hold hearings that do so.”
It is undeniable that many Capitol Police officers and DC police acted heroically on January 6. Yet there are still troubling questions about leadership decisions that day. For instance, why was the Capitol Police not operating at full staff? Moreover, Capitol Police are seen on video letting hundreds into the Capitol with no protest, bumping fists with protestors, and allegedly opening Capitol doors for their entry.
Why have some January 6 cases been treated differently than others?
Last year, Revolver News noticed a pattern after meticulous study of charging documents that “in many cases the unindicted co-conspirators appear to be much more aggressive and egregious participants in the very so-called ‘conspiracy’ serving as the basis for charging those indicted.”
As a corollary to the line of questioning about Ray Epps, House Republicans will likely look into whether there were systematic discrepancies in prosecution that denied equal application of law. If indeed there was, this would suggest that the “investigation and prosecution of the Capitol breach” as the “largest in American history” has been deeply infected by political motivation.
Who were the anonymous “sources” telling the New York Times that Officer Sicknick was killed by a fire extinguisher?
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick tragically passed away from a blood clot and a stroke shortly after the January 6 riot. But on January 8, the New York Times reported that, according to “two law enforcement officials,” Officer Sicknick was “struck” in the head “with a fire extinguisher.” “With a bloody gash in his head, Mr. Sicknick was rushed to the hospital and placed on life support,” the story went on.
But that was not true. Sicknick had texted his brother on the night of January 6th to let him know he was “in good shape” except for being pepper-sprayed. Months later, it was finally revealed that Sicknick died of natural causes. But by the time the New York Times “updated” its story, the narrative that supporters of President Trump were murderers had been blasted across airwaves and the lie was repeated endlessly in the televised January 6 Committee hearings. How this false narrative started and why it was allowed to spread unchecked for so long will likely be of interest to the new GOP House majority.
Why do we still not know who planted the RNC and DNC pipe bombs?
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was inside the DNC headquarters on January 6 when what has been described as a pipe bomb was discovered on the premises. Around the same time, another device was discovered at the RNC. Yet nearly two years later, the Committee has produced no further information on who is responsible, and this seemingly central event was scarcely mentioned (if it was mentioned at all) in the Committee hearings.
Why have tapes from Capitol security cameras not been released?
Capitol police reportedly provided more than 14,000 hours of footage from January 6 to lawmakers. Yet only a fraction of those tapes have been released publicly. Earlier this year, several House Republicans called for the release of all the video, only to be ignored by the Committee. But with the GOP taking charge, the full library of footage may finally be released.
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If the goal of the January 6 Committee truly is, as Pelosi said last year, to “seek the truth,” then Liz Cheney and company have fallen woefully short of their goal. Republicans have a chance in the next Congress to get to the bottom of what really happened, and getting answers to these eight questions should be where they start.
Claire Brighn is the pen name of a conservative researcher and writer with previous domestic and foreign policy experience in the Executive Branch.