Another sweeping select committee in the House, with no boycott this time
Washington — Hours after House Republicans approved a sweeping new select subcommittee promising an unprecedented review of misconduct or overreach by the federal government, a number of veteran House Democrats told CBS News they will participate in the panel.
They said the party will not boycott or stand down from the subcommittee, in contrast to how most House Republicans refused to take allotted seats on the landmark House Jan. 6 select committee.
As one of its first orders of business as the majority party in the House, Republicans approved a select subcommittee "on the Weaponization of the Federal Government" in a party-line vote Tuesday. The panel will have unique, sweeping power, including the ability to issue subpoenas to wide swaths of federal agencies. House Republican leaders said the panel will 'investigate how the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, and other executive branch agencies" operate.
The new panel has been compared to the Jan. 6. select committee, which undertook an extensive 18-month investigation into the U.S. Capitol attack beginning in 2021. The Jan. 6 committee held hearings which drew tens of millions of viewers, and was able to synchronize and unify its message and presentations, in part due to a boycott from nearly all House Republicans.
Democrats, some of whom have referred to the new "Weaponization of the Federal Government" subcommittee as a "tinfoil hat committee," slammed the panel as a zealous group that would pursue conspiracy theories and unverified accusations of misconduct.
Nonetheless, a number of Democrats told CBS News they expect their party will participate in the committee's hearings to prevent Republicans from having unfettered ability to choreograph hearings and messaging.
Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, a Pennsylvania Democrat, told CBS News, "We've seen how effective it can be when one party is in control," referring to the Jan. 6 panel. "It's a tension we constantly deal with. You don't want to amplify conspiracy theories by repeating them. But on the other hand, you don't want people to think you agree with the truly crazy things that are being said."
Rep. Gerry Connolly, a Democrat from Virginia and member of the House Oversight Committee, told CBS News the select subcommittee "will prove nothing but the GOP's own hypocrisy. Democrats won't back down from defending our noble public servants."
House Democratic Caucus chair Rep. Pete Aguilar said, "It's in our best interest to make sure we are representing the will of the caucus and the American public, and that Republicans don't have an opportunity behind closed doors to shape and to add to these conspiracy theories."
Republicans have crafted some of the rules and guidelines of the new subcommittee using language that parallels the rules and deadlines of the Jan. 6 committee, including by providing subpoena power. The Weaponization of the Federal Government panel also requires "the select subcommittee shall cease to exist 30 days after filing the final report."
Republicans championed the subcommittee as a mechanism to control or prevent overreach by federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies. The supporters of the panel echoed criticisms by former President Donald Trump and top Republican leaders that federal agencies and "deep state" actors in the federal civil service have targeted Republicans or people who protested against abortion rights or against some school board policies.
The subcommittee was the subject of negotiations during the recent standoff between Republicans over the selection of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Rep. Dan Bishop of North Carolina, one of the Republican House members who initially voted against McCarthy in the first several rounds of speaker votes, championed the new subcommittee's approval yesterday.
"'We entrust our Department of Justice, FBI, and intelligence community with great power to keep us safe, and yet, as long as these agencies have existed, they've violated Americans' civil rights — everyday Americans," Bishop said on the House floor this week. "The security state believes itself to be above the Constitution and the laws passed by Congress."
The subcommittee will fall under the House Judiciary Committee in the 118th Congress. The Judiciary Committee has not fully organized nor announced a full roster of members yet.
Under the newly passed legislation, the Weaponization of the Federal Government subcommittee is expected to include eight Republicans and five Democrats.
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