WASHINGTON, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday called for an immediate end to the debate over creating a commission to investigate the Capitol riot carried out by his supporters on Jan. 6 to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden's election victory.
"Republicans in the House and Senate should not approve the Democrat trap of the January 6 Commission. It is just more partisan unfairness and unless the murders, riots, and fire bombings in Portland, Minneapolis, Seattle, Chicago, and New York are also going to be studied, this discussion should be ended immediately," Trump said in a statement Tuesday night.
The statement came on the eve of a scheduled vote in the Democratic-controlled House that is largely expected to be in favor of creating an independent investigative body modeled after the 9/11 Commission.
"Republicans must get much tougher and much smarter, and stop being used by the Radical Left. Hopefully, (Senate Minority Leader) Mitch McConnell and (House Minority Leader) Kevin McCarthy are listening!" Trump added.
McCarthy announced on Tuesday that he opposed the new legislation, saying it focuses too much on the attack at the Capitol and not enough on other violent riots that happened in the country, including incidents such as the 2017 shooting of GOP lawmakers at a congressional baseball game, and the fatal attack at the Capitol Complex on April 2 that killed a Capitol Police officer.
Also on Tuesday, the White House and bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus both endorsed the 1.9-billion-dollar bill, under which the commission will be granted subpoena power and will comprise five Democratic-appointed members, including the chair, as well as five GOP-appointed members, including the vice chair. None of the panel's 10 members will be sitting members of Congress.
Assuming the legislation passes the House, its fate in the Senate remains uncertain as passage there requires a bipartisan agreement to overcome the filibuster. If coming into being, the commission will be tasked with delivering a final report by Dec. 31. Enditem
