Democrats “never intended” their January 6 Select Committee to be political and “it was never planned as a political tactic,” House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) – who refused to allow Republicans to seat their own committee members – said Tuesday as the midterm elections were taking place.
Pelosi insisted that Democrats’ one-sided January 6 Select Committee hearings had no political agenda, when asked by PBS NewsHour Host Judy Woodruff about voters’ disinterest in the televised, public hearings.
“Well, well never intended it to be a political item. It’s about seeking the truth,” Pelosi responded.
“[I]t was never planned as a political tactic,” Pelosi added, repeating Democrats’ mantra that “democracy is at stake” in this year’s midterm elections.
But, as Constitution Scholar Mark Levin has explained on his “Life, Liberty & Levin” television program, the “illegitimate” hearings are an unconstitutional effort to indict and smear former President Donald Trump and his Republican colleagues:
“Article 1 (of the Constitution) provides no such authority – none – to the Congress of the United States. So, everything that that they’re doing – everything that they’re doing – which is openly and affirmatively criminal in nature, is a violation of Separation of Powers.”
What’s more, the hearings denied those accused of even the most basic rights of defendants in any criminal proceeding, Levin explained:
“This January 6 hearing is not only illegitimate because of all the reasons I’ve talked about in the past – lack of opposition, exculpatory evidence, cross-examination, and on and on and on – but, because Congress isn’t supposed to be doing this.”
The hearings aren’t actually about January 6, but about gathering evidence that the Justice Department wouldn’t be able to obtain using Due Process, Levin said:
“All of these interviews that have been taking place, that have been compelled by this committee, this one-sided committee, all those transcripts are eventually going to be turned over to the United States Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to be used against these individuals.”
“These hearings have confirmed that Donald Trump had no direct role, whatsoever, in the January 6 violence inside the Capitol building. None whatsoever. Now, how do we know that? Because they’ve presented it,” Levin said. Despite all of the committee’s interviews, presentations, hearsay and opinions, “They have found nothing,” Levin concluded.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R), who spent 20 years in Congress, has also explained how the one-sided hearings have been purely political.
“What I saw last night was a show trial worthy of Joseph Stalin,” Gingrich observed, following one of the hearings conducted in June. “Last night’s January 6 Committee propaganda show had nothing in common with legitimate congressional hearings.”
“There is a sense of fairness and Due Process which is central to American freedom and independence. The January 6 Committee has violated every aspect of due process, presumption of innocence, and impartial search for truth,” Gingrich noted.
Following a hearing in July, Gingrich called for Democrats’ January 6 Committee to release “all the facts” – not just the ones that benefit them politically – and to allow Republicans to cross-examined the Democrat-picked witnesses used to vilify and accuse former Trump and his colleagues:
“House Republicans should move a privileged resolution to release all the documents and interviews. Make the committee members explain why they want to keep the country from knowing all the facts.
“Let’s end the show trial and get back to a committee hearing with cross-examinations, open information, and real accountability for the committee and its staff.”
Speaker Pelosi’s full answer to PBS NewsHours’ Judy Woodruff is presented below:
Judy Woodruff: “A lot of attention has been devoted over the past year to the January 6th Special – the Select Committee investigating what happened. Public hearings, a lot of people thought that would play a big role in the election this fall. It is not turning out to be, the voters are not saying that’s at the top or anywhere near the top of the list of their concerns. Why do you think that is?”
Speaker Pelosi: “Well, we never intended it to be a political item. It's about seeking the truth. And it has had an impact on taking people to a place where they see the truth more clearly.
“But, it was never planned as a political tactic. But, you do see people saying that democracy is at stake in the election more and more, and those are not unrelated.
“But, if you see the assault that was made on the Capitol, on the Constitution of the United States, which we all take an oath to protect and defend, but clearly our colleagues have abandoned on the other side of the aisle, and you see the rhetoric that was going on that day. And you see what that man said, coming into my home, you see a threat. And that's just not something that has a place in our democracy.”