Jim Banks: Nancy Pelosi Proved January 6 Commission a ‘Purely Partisan Exercise’

Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN) said Wednesday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) rejection of his and Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-OH) participation in the January 6 commission proves that the investigation is nothing more than a “purely partisan exercise.”

Pelosi announced Wednesday that she rejected House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) selection of Banks and Jordan to serve on the commission to investigate the January 6 riots and protests.

Banks, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) chairman, said that this proves the partisan nature of the commission, saying:

I’m a sitting member of Congress and served my country in Afghanistan and the Speaker knows how hard I will fight for my country. We said all along that this was a purely partisan exercise by the Democrats and Nancy Pelosi’s rejection of me and Jim Jordan shows once again she is the most partisan figure in America today. The American people deserve the truth. Unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi is afraid of the facts.

“She knows @Jim_Jordan & I will fight for our country and for the truth. This proves again this is entirely a political stunt, not a true effort to follow the facts,” the Hoosier conservative said.

Rachel Bade, a CNN political analyst, noted Wednesday that Pelosi’s rejection of Banks and Jordan reveals the partisan nature of the investigation.

“Pelosi’s move to reject GOP picks for the 1/6 panel is going to be a gift to Kevin McCarthy in the long run,” Bade said, noting this plays into McCarthy’s hand. “He wanted this panel to look partisan and political. Now it’s definitely going to look partisan and political.”

Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), another member selected to serve on the January 6 commission, said, “It’s bullshit. Jim Banks and Jim Jordan have every right to serve on any committee Kevin [McCarthy] appoints them to.”

“Whenever Speaker Pelosi uses the word ‘unprecedented,’ it is code for her consolidation of absolute power. She is willing to do anything and everything to maintain control over her conference for the next 18 months,” he added.

Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.