Republican who backed Jan. 6 panel defends vote: It won’t be a ‘witch hunt’ against Trump

An Oklahoma Republican who backed the Jan. 6 commission defended her vote in a video, saying it wouldn’t be a “witch hunt” against former President Trump.

“First and foremost, I will not let this commission be a witch hunt by Nancy Pelosi. The purpose of the commission is not to go after former President Trump, but to find out why the Capitol police and sergeants-at-arms were so unprepared,” Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.) said.

I’m out in the district today and wanted to provide an update on my vote for the Jan. 6 commission. pic.twitter.com/R0KJuac6J9

— Rep. Stephanie Bice (@RepBice) May 21, 2021

Bice was one of the 35 Republicans who voted with all the Democrats to form a 9/11-style commission to investigate the events of Jan. 6.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) praised the handful of Republicans who “courageously” voted for the commission on Thursday.

Bice said the commission needs to focus on questions surrounding Pelosi and her decisions during the Capitol riot.

“There are important questions that must be answered about Nancy Pelosi’s involvement in the decision to deny an activation request for the D.C. National Guard to protect the Capitol,” Bice said.

“There are still questions about why a female Air Force vet was shot dead steps off the House floor without an open investigation,” she added, referring to Ashli Babbitt, a 35-year-old veteran whom a U.S. Capitol Police officer fatally shot during the riot. “We must also discover why the individuals arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 incident are being held in solitary confinement.”

Trump attacked the Republicans who voted for the commission, saying they were “ineffective and weak.”

“Without the commission, where conservatives are guaranteed an equal voice, Democrats like [Rep. Jerry] Nadler [N.Y.], [Rep. Adam] Schiff [Calif.] and Pelosi will be driving the narrative in a Dem-led investigation just like they’ve done in the past,” Bice said.