J6 Committee Misleading Witnesses About Republican Staff Presence
'If this was a real investigation, that'd land you in jail for prosecutorial misconduct,' Rep. Jim Banks said.
Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney ran to CNN a few weeks ago to accuse conservative stalwart Rep. Jim Banks of falsely presenting himself as the Jan. 6 commission’s ranking member. Banks is, in fact, congressional Republicans’ choice to be their top investigator on the committee, but he has been prevented from fulfilling his duties by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
However, it’s Cheney who appears to be misrepresenting herself as the ranking member — that is, the top Republican — on the committee.
January 6 Select Committee staff have been falsely telling witnesses that Republican staff will be present for interviews, according to multiple eyewitness sources and documents. In fact, not a single Republican-appointed member of Congress nor a single staff member representing the Republican conference is part of the controversial committee.
Witnesses are being told that John Wood, a longtime friend and ally of the Cheney family, will represent Republicans when witnesses testify. But neither Cheney nor her friend is representing the Republican conference. In fact, Cheney was appointed to the committee in early July by Pelosi herself.
“John Wood works for the Democrat Party, just like Liz Cheney, who was appointed by Pelosi and is not the Ranking Member of the Select Committee. She is misleading witnesses, before they testify under penalty of law, about the motives and the position of the person questioning them,” said Banks, who has continued leading Republicans’ investigation of the federal government’s handling of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. Cheney’s work with CNN was designed to prevent him from being able to gain answers to the questions the select committee was ostensibly set up to answer.
Cheney was given six days to explain whether she considers herself just the Democrat-appointed vice-chair of the committee or also the Republican ranking member, as is being represented to key witnesses. She has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
The misrepresentation to witnesses is key because the absence of any ranking member — meaning, in this case, any Republican-appointed member — or minority party staff means the committee appears to be failing to adhere to ironclad rules for its work.
Pelosi “blew up” the Jan. 6 committee when she took what she herself admitted was the “unprecedented” step of refusing to seat multiple Republican-appointed members, including the highly respected Navy officer and Indiana Republican Banks, who was to be the committee’s ranking member. She also banned Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, who currently serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.
https://thefederalist.com/2021/11/10/j6-committee-misleading-witnesses-about-republican-staff-presence/