A proposal to create a 9/11-style commission to investigate the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack advanced in a congressional committee Tuesday even as one key Republican announced opposition and another suggested former President Donald Trump could become a witness.
The Democrat-backed proposal won approval in the House of Representatives Rules Committee, setting up a planned vote in the full House on Wednesday. The party-line vote in the committee, with Democrats in favor and Republicans against, came hours after Kevin McCarthy, the top House Republican and a Trump ally, announced his opposition.
The measure faces uncertain prospects in the evenly divided Senate.
Trump's actions likely would be closely scrutinized in any commission investigation. Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski, asked during a CNN interview whether Trump should talk to the panel if it is created, said, "If you put together a commission that is focused on the events of Jan. 6, then I think he's obviously a very key individual."
The Rules Committee advanced a separate bill that would provide $1.9 billion in emergency funding for Capitol security, also opposed by Republicans.
Repudiating a deal on the commission announced last week by the top Democratic and Republican members of the House Homeland Security Committee, McCarthy said in a statement: "I cannot support this legislation."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, told reporters she was disappointed but not surprised over the "cowardice" shown by some Republicans "not to want to find the truth."
The bill would establish a 10-member bipartisan commission to investigate the causes of the attack, security shortcomings and intelligence information. The panel would be directed to release a final report by Dec. 31. It would be similar to one that investigated the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States by al Qaeda militants and made sweeping recommendations.
This report contains material from Reuters.
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